


The Kunoichi Project

by Lyn_Laine



Category: Naruto
Genre: All Girls, All Kunoichi, Feminist, Girls Kick Ass
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-25
Updated: 2015-04-30
Packaged: 2018-03-25 14:57:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 30,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3814684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lyn_Laine/pseuds/Lyn_Laine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In a world where Mitarashi Anko is a Genin Naruto's age and Team Gai is in Naruto's graduating class, an idea is formed.  The Hokage decides to group three girls together into one team: Yamanaka Ino, Mitarashi Anko, and Hanakiri TenTen.  He assigns Yuuhi Kurenai as their Jounin instructor.  Thus begins the Kunoichi Project.  What sorts of adventures will an all-girls ninja team have?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

The Kunoichi Project

1.

They were sitting in the Konoha Ninja Academy classroom, surrounded by their fellow classmates. A nervous tension filled the air. Students were being called into the next room over, one by one, by their Academy instructors -- both men -- and tested on the Bunshin jutsu. If they couldn’t make two good clones, they would not make Genin.

Three girls in particular were confident. They were the top three kunoichi of their graduating class by a wide margin, and were constantly competing with each other: Hanakiri TenTen, Mitarashi Anko, and Yamanaka Ino. Each was confident they would perform the best showing in the exam. 

TenTen was called in first. She had brown hair arranged in a complex bun hairdo and chocolate brown eyes. She wore a Chinese silk shirt and pants. When she was called in, she was clutching her prayer beads and in the midst of praying. TenTen was an extremely credulous girl and she believed that when you asked the universe for help, the universe listened. 

“Hanakiri TenTen.” TenTen looked up, and stood to take her test. 

As she passed by Ino and Anko, she smiled. “Watch me,” she muttered.

When she came out, she was proudly carrying her new hitai-ate.

Anko was called in next. She had shocking purple hair done up with a clip at the back of her head, and amber-colored eyes. She wore fishnet armor and gigantic black boots. When she was called in, she was in the midst of eating. She always packed herself a careful lunch, full of delicious hand-made food, and carried constantly with her was a warmed thermos of tea. Anko believed strongly in the fine art of tea and the importance of a good meal. She was currently on a Mediterranean-style diet, her favorite food was dango, and she had passed the tea ceremony part of her kunoichi classes with flying colors.

“Mitarashi Anko.” Anko looked up, and stood to take her test.

As she passed by Ino, she sighed affectedly. “I’m going to wipe the floor with you,” she said scathingly.

When she came out, she was proudly carrying her new hitai-ate.

Ino was called in last. She had platinum blonde hair done up in a ponytail, shocking blue eyes, and she wore a dark shirt and skirt combo and eye makeup. When she was called in, she was in the midst of watching Haruno Sakura make googley eyes at a boy in their class named Uchiha Sasuke. Ino and Sakura had once been friends, after Ino had saved Sakura from some bullies. Later, Ino had pretended for a while to compete against Sakura for Sasuke’s affections, thinking it would help Sakura’s self confidence. But Sakura, with poor self esteem and a sharp tongue, had quickly proven herself quite harpy-ish and so Ino had just drifted off. It wasn’t worth it, and Ino didn’t like keeping people in her life who didn’t make her feel good. Anko and TenTen, whatever their faults, were healthier to be around than Sakura. Still, Sakura’s rejection of her did bother her, on some level. 

Ino had gone shopping for a new outfit in preparation for her Genin test. Looking like a million bucks made her feel good, and she wore that new outfit today for her test. She’d also filled her bag with flowers from her mother’s flower shop, so that the sweet perfume filled her from her seat.

“Yamanaka Ino.” Ino looked up, and stood to take her test. She smirked silently as she walked into the exam room.

When she came out, she was proudly carrying her new hitai-ate.

Ino, TenTen, and Anko had all gotten perfect grades in nearly every subject: the female etiquette lessons specific to kunoichi, taijutsu, genjutsu breaking, the three Academy ninjutsu, stealth, trap making, and team management and psychology. 

They were perfect for a little experiment the third Hokage wanted to try.

-

“Ah, Kurenai, please come in. Take a seat.”

Yuuhi Kurenai, tall and glamorous with long thick dark curls and distinctive crimson eyes, sat down across from the Hokage uncertainly. The Hokage had called her in for a personal meeting. She wondered if he was giving her some top secret mission -- Jounin were sometimes assigned to such things.

“Kurenai, you agreed to test a Genin team this year, correct?” the Hokage asked.

“Yes, Hokage-sama,” said Kurenai. “Is something wrong? Are we overstaffed?”

“Nothing so severe. Though if we were overstaffed, it would be a happy misfortune,” the Hokage added dryly. “I would simply like to run an idea by you. I am considering the idea of deploying an all kunoichi team, and was wondering if you’d be willing to lead it.”

Kurenai, a woman in her twenties, came from a set of strict ninja parents. She was a wine connoisseur and a great reader of psychology. She had previously tutored another young kunoichi, unsuccessfully. She was also an extremely dutiful ninja with a fiery determination to be the best.

“Who are the girls in question, Hokage-sama?” Kurenai asked.

“Yamanaka Ino, Mitarashi Anko, and Hanakiri TenTen. They’re the three best kunoichi in their year and are constantly competing against each other, showing a determination to be the best that even matches yours at their age, Kurenai.”

“Yamanaka... the mind-body controllers. Typically information gatherers,” said Kurenai thoughtfully.

“Mitarashi has excellent chakra control, and could inherit your genjutsu ability. Both Yamanaka and Mitarashi show a positively sadistic ability to manipulate others. Hanakiri is very good at taijutsu and seems to be a budding weapons specialist.”

“So they cover both close distance and long distance,” said Kurenai, pleased.

“Yes. The only thing I would worry about is their competitive natures. Competition can be good, but only if --”

“Channeled in the right way,” Kurenai finished.

“Exactly.” The Hokage nodded.

“Alright,” Kurenai accepted. “I’ll take them. It should be an interesting exercise.”

“Very good. Then the four teams most expected to pass are as follows: Yamanaka Ino, Mitarashi Anko, and Hanakiri TenTen, under Yuuhi Kurenai. Rock Lee, Hyuuga Neji, and Nara Shikamaru, under Maito Gai. Uchiha Sasuke, Uzumaki Naruto, and Akimichi Chouji, under Hatake Kakashi. Hyuuga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba, and Aburame Shino, under Sarutobi Asuma.” 

There was only one other girl in the entire lineup, and she was from one of the most prestigious ninja families in Konoha. Kunoichi weren’t nearly as common as male ninja, after all.

-

When Ino entered the Academy classroom where they’d be given their first ninja assignment, Anko was lounging languidly in her seat and TenTen was sitting forward eagerly, smirking. She sat in between them.

“Girls,” she greeted them coolly. Then: “I bet I can finish our first mission before you.” Her tone was smug.

Anko snorted. “Says you. You were the last to pass.”

“Only because our names were listed alphabetically. What about you, Anko? You took like ten minutes in there. What were you trying to do, shit out another clone?” Ino retorted.

Anko stood, her face reddening. “Say that again.” Anko had a bit of a temper.

“What, you want to fight? I’m game,” said Ino, standing too.

“Yeah, that’s it. Get into a fight on our first day, ruin your chances of looking good to your superiors. Brilliant.” TenTen rolled her eyes.

“Know it all,” said Anko scathingly.

“I’d like to think so,” said TenTen.

“Oh, gag me,” Ino replied.

“I’m not getting pulled into your guys’s mess,” said TenTen. “Besides, we all know I could wipe the floor with both of you any day.”

“I reject that out of hand! Let’s step outside.” Anko waved to the door in an exaggeratedly polite bow, smirking.

So they filed out toward the door, ready and eagerly anticipating another three way fight. As they passed, they saw a bunch of girls arguing over the seat next to Uchiha Sasuke -- one of them was Haruno Sakura. They appeared to have tossed a staring Uzumaki Naruto out of his seat next Sasuke.

“Harpies,” Ino greeted them on the way by. “Haruno.”

The girls glared. “Ino-pig,” said Sakura in a hostile fashion, hand on her hip.

“I may be a pig, but at least I’m a good ninja,” said Ino dryly, and Anko and TenTen swallowed their laughter.

“What, and you’re saying I’m not?!” Sakura’s eyes narrowed.

“Haruno, if you spent half the time training that you do thinking about Uchiha Sasuke, you could beat the shit out of me any day,” said Ino. The harpies giggled, but Sakura looked angry. 

“You just want Sasuke all to yourself!” She moved to hit Ino, and a hand went to stop her. But it wasn’t Ino’s. It was Anko’s.

“Watch it, Haruno,” said Anko, grinning gleefully. Sakura swallowed and took a step back at the sadistic look in Anko’s eyes. “You fight one, you get all three of us.”

TenTen smirked and went for her kunai pouch. Ino covered her surprise at their defense of her and tried to look certain.

Just then, their old Academy instructor Umino Iruka walked into the room. “What’s going on?” He frowned, looking between the two groups of girls.

“... Nothing,” said Sakura sullenly at last, stepping back. Then she sat quickly down next to Sasuke, sticking her tongue out at the other angry harpies. Sasuke glanced sideways at Sakura and then rolled his eyes -- not a promising indicator of a future relationship.

“Iruka-sensei,” said Anko, raising her hand, “me and the other two lovely ladies with me were just about to get into a really good fight where I beat the shit out of them -”

“Says you!”

“In your dreams!”

Anko smirked. “So we were wondering if you could postpone announcements until that happens?”

“I’m not delaying team announcements for a silly spat,” Iruka scolded. “Go sit down.” He glared after them as they went to their seats. Anko had rolled her eyes, TenTen had pouted, and Ino had opened her mouth as if to argue but then changed her mind.

Once they were all seated, Iruka sighed and said, “Now. You have all graduated into the ranks. Congratulations. From here, you start out at the lowest rank -- Genin. The Genin gathered here today will now be separated into three-man squads. Each squad will be led by a Jounin-ranking instructor who will help them accomplish their first missions.”

He started listing off the teams from a sheet of paper, and seemed to place special emphasis on Teams Seven, Eight, Nine, and Ten.

“Team Seven: Uchiha Sasuke, Uzumaki Naruto, and Akimichi Chouji.” All boys. Naruto shouted out in annoyance at being teamed up with Sasuke.

“Team Eight: Inuzuka Kiba, Aburame Shino, and Hyuuga Hinata.” The only girl was Hinata. All of them seemed neutral to their assigned team.

“Team Nine: Hyuuga Neji, Rock Lee, and Nara Shikamaru.” All boys. Shikamaru complained and Lee shouted enthusiastically. 

“Team Ten: Mitarashi Anko, Yamanaka Ino, Hanakiri TenTen.” Iruka looked up hesitantly, as if expecting an argument.

But far from an argument, the girls looked... excited? TenTen’s eyes had widened as a beam filled her face, Ino looked surprised but satisfied, and a slow gleeful grin was working its way toward Anko’s entirely vicious eyes.

“This,” she said, “is going to be great.”

-

They all sat in a circle and had lunch together at the nearby park. They had one hour to eat lunch, before they had to head back to their Academy classroom to meet with their Jounin instructor. In a show of good faith, Anko shared her lunch with the other girls.

“This is going to be great. A team of all girls,” said Anko decisively.

“You bet it is!” TenTen enthused.

“And I think we should unanimously elect me the leader,” Anko added, lifting her chin.

“Uh. Excuse me? No,” Ino replied. 

“No way!” TenTen agreed, frowning. “I’m the sanest one; I should lead.”

“Sanity is relative,” said Ino, scoffing. 

“It’s also not a good indicator of being a good ninja,” Anko added in a mutter. 

“What do you mean?” Ino and TenTen asked in confusion.

“When we get back to the classroom to meet the Jounin, I’ll show you,” Anko promised.

-

Sure enough, the Jounin were just one long, male parade of insanity.

Sarutobi Asuma was a lazy cigarette addict.

Gekkou Hayate was thin and sickly.

Morino Ibiki was a massive, bald, scowling muscle-head.

Hatake Kakashi never showed up. 

Maito Gai wore a green spandex body suit and orange leg warmers, had an incredible bowl cut, and kept shouting enthusiastically about “the power of youth.”

“So that’s where Lee got it from,” said TenTen.

Anko and Ino were laughing over the look on Shikamaru’s face as he stared at Gai, until a thought occurred to Ino. “What will our Jounin instructor be like?” All three girls wilted in dread, wincing.

But when a tall, glamorous dark-haired woman walked in and called out, “Team Ten?” it wasn’t as bad as they’d thought it would be. They perked up, hurrying over to her.

“Sensei, I’m easily the most amazing person on this team!” said Anko, leaning forward aggressively.

“I’m ready for my close up!” Ino struck a pose, smirking.

“I’m so excited to be taught by a cool older woman!” said TenTen, fists in front of her face, stars in her eyes.

Kurenai sweat dropped.

-

Kurenai took the three girls out for milkshakes at a nice cafe. They sat outside underneath an umbrella, the wind buffeting their hair.

“Okay,” said Kurenai, “here’s how this works. We each go around in a circle and introduce ourselves to each other. Once we’ve done introductions, I’m supposed to put you guys through a second test. If you do not pass this test, you will be sent somewhere else, either back to the Academy or into the reserves. If you do pass, you will get to stay an active-duty Genin with hopes of advancing."

“So we’ve got to win this test,” said Ino, clenching her cup determinedly.

TenTen’s eyes had widened.

“I thought that Genin test was just a little too easy...” Anko muttered. “What?” she added at their stares. “It was! We just show our proficiency at one ninjutsu and we’re allowed to be ninja? What about all the other stuff we’d practiced over the years?”

“Exactly,” said Kurenai. “This second test will be much harder. But I have faith in you. I think you will pass and be allowed to remain my Genin.”

'My' Genin. It had a nice ring to it.

-

“So, I’ll go first. My name Yuuhi Kurenai. I like trying new wine and reading scientific nonfiction. I dislike idiots and bad parents.”

“The two often coincide,” her Genin noted dryly, in tandem.

“Well,” Kurenai smiled, “quite. My dream is to prove myself as a strong ninja to the people I love.”

“I’m Yamanaka Ino. I like shopping and flowers. I dislike fakers who pretend to be friends and my own tendency toward indecisiveness. My dream is to fall in love and be a strong kunoichi.”

“That’s mine,” said TenTen immediately.

“Mine too,” said Anko, shrugging.

“Even the fall in love part, Anko?” TenTen asked in surprise.

“What? I’m allowed to be a girl if I want to,” said Anko defensively, blushing. “Anyway, I’m Mitarashi Anko. I like good food, good tea, and tea ceremony. I dislike traitors, hypocrites, and spineless people. My dream has already been said.”

“And I’m Hanakiri TenTen. I like trying out new religions, plotting astrology charts, and reading tarot cards. I also really admire strong older kunoichi as role models, which is why I want to be one someday. I dislike people who give up easily. My dream’s already been said, too.”

“Alright,” said Kurenai. “Very good. Now, our milkshakes are done and so are our introductions, so let’s get to the Genin test, shall we?” The girls all sat forward eagerly, ready to prove themselves, and Kurenai suppressed a smile. 

“You will be sent on a treasure hunt around the village. First, you will go to a certain teahouse, the address of which I will give you, and show your infiltration abilities by pretending to be geisha. If you can pass as geisha for one client, you will be given a red ticket by the head of the teahouse.

“Next, you will sneak up on your old Academy instructor, Umino Iruka, as he’s walking home from work. If you can sneak up on him, entrap him, and then defeat him, he will give you a second red ticket. Be sure to remember this: you must defeat him using a combination of taijutsu, ninjutsu, 'and' genjutsu. You also must successfully enact a trap against him. And you must use stealth sometime during the fight. Otherwise, it won’t count.

“You will take these two red tickets to a menagerie, the address of which I will also give you. There, you will trade in your two red tickets for a rabbit, one with specific black markings to make it recognizable. Be warned: I am an illusions specialist and will know if you try to pass off an ordinary rabbit for the correct one. 

“Your job is to take the rabbit around the village, in a pattern labeled on a map I will give you. There will be markers along this route, with little scraps of paper you will have to take up to show you passed that point. If you can meet me just inside the gates of the village, with the marker papers and the rabbit, by eight o’clock tonight, you will pass into Genin.

“Here’s a side note: You can just go the quick way to the gates, without taking up the markers. But if you don’t get the markers, you will be deemed only adequate, whereas if you go around the village to get the markers, you will be deemed excellent.

“Any questions? Good. Go. You’ll need all the time you can get.”

Her new Genin all leaped up in a blur of speed and disappeared.


	2. Chapter Two

2.

“Are you sure it’s this way?”

“No, I’m certain it’s this way!”

Ino, Anko, and TenTen bickered with each other all the way to the teahouse. Each had a different idea of where the address was, and each had their own way of getting there. At last, TenTen had the idea of just checking the map Kurenai had given them.

“I mean, surely she gave it to us for a reason,” said TenTen in exasperation.

Anko checked the map. “Oh, yeah,” she said, grinning sheepishly. “There it is.”

“You’re telling me none of us were right?!” Ino was a tad frustrated.

They made it to the teahouse, where a little old lady let them inside. “I was told to expect you, three young kunoichi,” she said. “You will get ready for your client in the other room.”

In the offered room, they applied makeup and put their hair into buns, before each choosing a differently colored kimono. Ino chose a turquoise kimono with coral pink edging and a coral pink bird pattern, along with a golden yellow obi. Anko chose a russet colored kimono with forest green edging and a forest green leaf pattern, along with a deep, plum purple obi. TenTen chose a black kimono with white edging and a white snowflake pattern, along with a white obi. 

When they left the room, they found a note on their door. "You are allowed to keep what you wear," it said. "The room to prepare is across the hall from you. The client will arrive in one hour. Come find me in my office with the man when you are finished."

So they went in and prepared the room, each naturally gravitating toward a different duty. TenTen decorated the room with calligraphic scrolls. Ino made several quiet and tasteful flower arrangements, placing them around the room. Anko set tatami mats around the low-set table, and prepared the tea and snacks. Each was already practicing how to move -- there was an art to moving like a geisha, with the movements sensuous and graceful, the head straight up as if a book had been placed on top of it.

They knelt and slide aside the door at the appointed time, to let the client inside. “There they are!” said the old man on the other side, beaming. “The three beautiful girls I was told about!” As they all went to gather around the table, he stuck his hand around someone’s butt and squeezed.

That was the beginning to a very long hour.

They had food and tea, Anko taking care to make her movements and the way she poured the tea as slow and graceful as if she were presenting tea ceremony. They all set to eating, chatting politely about this and that, and after a while Anko noticed the old man continuously rubbing up against her, placing a hand on her thigh. 

Geisha didn’t have sex with their clients, but geisha didn’t rip their clients’ hands off either. Anko’s eye twitched. 'Do not kill the client. Do not kill the client.'

TenTen saw her growing rage and sent Ino a panicked glance. So Ino scooted closer to the old man, smiling, and flirted with him, just a little. He merely turned away from her stonily and asked if there was any sake available. 

Ino nearly fell to the floor. 'You asshole! I was working hard to get you to be inappropriate with me!' So then Ino was angry, because she felt slighted and not pretty enough to be the object of someone’s attraction.

TenTen, in a sign of growing desperation, stood and tried to distract everyone with song and dance. “Let’s have some music playing!” she said brightly, as if this was a brilliant idea, and she had Ino and Anko stand up and kneel behind her, playing their instruments while she danced and sang.

At the end of the dance, she paused, her hands out in a pose, and the instruments strummed to a halt. They were about to congratulate themselves on a job well done, when the old man squinted at TenTen’s palms.

“How did you get those calluses on your hands?” he asked in surprise.

All three girls felt a moment of profound panic as they realized their cover might be blown. So, without looking at each other, they began crafting a story.

“Well, we get picked on a lot walking home from work -”

“Yes, so we’ve been taking some self defense classes, to -”

“To better protect ourselves.”

Ino and Anko continued smiling and nodding in a strained sort of way, as TenTen hung her head to evoke pity.

“That’s terrible...” said the old man, growing emotional, and their cover was saved.

At the blessed end of the hour, they had the old man stand up. “Someone wants to meet you,” they said, sharing smiles, and they went into the old woman’s office. The man followed behind them, puzzled.

“Ah.” The woman put her head upright. “And how were my geisha?” she asked, her expression unrevealing.

“Very good, very good...” said the old man, looking confused.

The old woman smiled, and handed over the red ticket. “Thank you, girls. You may leave.”

As they were redressing, they heard shouting begin from the old lady’s office. They winced and shared amused looks with each other. “I don’t envy her the job of explaining to him that he just felt up three growing kunoichi,” said Ino, and Anko snorted.

-

Next, Ino, Anko, and TenTen went back to the Academy. From there, they leapt up onto surrounding rooftops, and each went a different way, checking each route away from the Academy, looking for hints as to where Iruka might have gone. 

Finally, TenTen found Iruka, walking along below her. She hid below the roof’s ledge, waited until he’d passed her, then sent up a red flare. Anko and Ino, who had been looking for such a thing, quickly hurried to meet her.

“There he is,” Anko whispered, as they all stared at Iruka’s retreating back from the ramen place’s rooftop. “We have to hurry and get in front of him.”

They ran ahead of Iruka, jumping from rooftop to rooftop, and when they’d rounded the corner he was about to head around, they leaped down softly to the pavement and picked up the paving stones, putting prepped explosive tags underneath them. There was the trap. They hid in surrounding alleyways and watched hawkishly. There was the stealth.

Iruka walked right over the paving stones and then his eyes widened at the telltale hiss. He leaped up into the air, and then was thrown higher by the explosion that rocked the ground beneath him.

Ino was up first. She made the correct seal and tried to do a mind meld in her family’s special ninjutsu, to take over Iruka’s brain and have it do her bidding. But the jutsu could only go in a straight line from one to the other, and Iruka dodged out of the way, panicked.

He dodged right into TenTen’s kunai knife attack.

Iruka, now bleeding from several places, landed on the ground and he and TenTen engaged in a furious taijutsu fight. But meanwhile, Anko had crafted an illusion, transforming herself into a piece of rubble. Once the rubble was knocked close to Iruka’s foot during the taijutsu fight, she changed back into herself and grabbed his ankle, yanking him down and latching onto him.

“Ino!” TenTen barked. “Now!”

Ino went for another mind meld and when Iruka was held still, it was successful. Ino took over Iruka’s mind, as her own body slumped into unconsciousness. She kept Iruka sedate and at ease as Anko and TenTen tied him up in a way that even a ninja couldn’t easily get out of.

Then she retreated into her own body, and all three girls stood above a disoriented, blinking Iruka.

“Consider yourself beaten. Now we’re going to need that ticket,” said Anko.

-

“Here’s your rabbit,” said the lady at the menagerie counter, smiling and handing it over. “Take good care of him, please.”

“I’ll take him,” said TenTen.

“No, I’ll take him!” said Ino. They frowned, glaring at each other. 

“Okay,” Anko sighed, “which of you has more experience with animals?”

“I do,” said TenTen. “My grandmother has some pet birds back at home. You have to try to be relaxing around them so they don’t get skittish.”

“TenTen gets the rabbit,” said Anko.

“Wait a minute, why do you get to decide -?” Ino began angrily.

“Girls, we’re wasting time. It’s almost six o’clock,” said Anko meaningfully. They quieted, looking at each other. “The question we have to ask ourselves now is... do we want to be deemed excellent?” 

“Of course,” said Ino and TenTen as one, as if this should be obvious.

Anko smiled slightly. “That’s what I thought. Maybe this whole teammate thing will work after all.”

“Okay, so, let’s get out the map,” said TenTen. 

They took out the map and, following its pattern, they started walking, passing the differently colored markers. They argued the whole way -- about which way to go, whose turn it was to hold the rabbit, and a whole host of other things. By the time they got to the gates, the rabbit had almost gotten away from them a number of times and they all wanted to rip each other’s hair out.

But they got there.

Kurenai was waiting by the gates. She stood straight and smiled slightly as she saw them walk up. “So, how did you do?” she asked.

“We have the markers,” said Anko, holding the different pieces of colored paper up wearily. “And the rabbit.” Ino and TenTen were sagging in exhaustion behind her.

Just then, the rabbit leaped out of Ino’s arms and hopped over to hide in the nearest bush.

“Goddamnit, Ino!” said Anko, at last losing her temper. “You just ruined our chances of passing the test!” 

“But that can’t count!” said TenTen, flabbergasted. She eyed Kurenai uncertainly. “... Can it?” The other girls turned slowly to their Sensei in dread.

Kurenai laughed. “No, it doesn’t count,” she said. “You three pass.”

“YES!” Anko jumped, pumping her fists in the air. Ino and TenTen beamed, brightening.

“Now, let me explain something important,” said Kurenai. “You didn’t just win because you did what you were required to do. Covertly, I was also testing you on something else.

“If you hadn’t made it around the village to all the markers, you wouldn’t have passed the test. I lied to you. I needed to test two things: I wanted to see if you were willing to put in the hard work to be excellent, if you had the motivation to really do well. And I also needed to make sure you guys had good enough teamwork to make it through this entire afternoon and succeed.”

“Well, we wanted to strangle each other a few times,” Ino admitted curiously.

“But you made it through together, and that’s very important. You all pass. I would say you are good Genin-level ninja.” Kurenai smiled. “Congratulations.”

“So, what happens from here?” TenTen asked.

“From here, we begin doing D rank missions. Let me explain. Missions are brought by clients, and are then sorted into levels A, B, C, and D. The D ranks are the easiest and also cheapest missions. That’s what you’ll be starting out with as Genin. There is no fighting required; they’re basically just paid chores. But, they’re important because they will allow you to become more cohesive as a team. Use this time to get to know each other.

“We will also take this time to begin training. I want each of you to start training very intensively -- TenTen in close combat with fists and weapons, Ino in ninjutsu, and Anko in genjutsu.”

“And you’ll be helping us?” one of the girls asked, and all three seemed eager, excited.

“Of course I will. I want each of you to be excellent.” Kurenai smiled, but her eyes were hard, determined.

-

“But we don’t know the first thing about taking care of a vegetable garden,” TenTen complained. She and her teammates looked up at Kurenai. They’d just gotten their first D rank mission and were standing outside the mission assignments room.

“That’s what you’ll be learning over the course of this lesson,” said Kurenai gently. “This elderly woman may have trouble bending over her vegetable garden now that she’s having hip problems, but she’s been taking care of it for years and knows intimately how it works. Just do what she tells you.”

So they made it to the house, which was right in downtown Konoha, and walked up the steps and past the front porch to ring the doorbell. The little old lady opened it up, and smiled at them through the screen, the lines in her face deepening.

“Ma’am,” said TenTen, “we’re the ninja you sent for.”

“Yes, yes, let’s go around back.”

The old woman taught them about garden care maintenance. 

“First,” she said, “there’s watering. Watering requires great care: watering too much leaves mold growing around the roots and choking the plant. Watering too little leaves the plant brown and wilted. Also, water must be sprinkled on the vegetables instead of poured on. A heavy hose torrent can wash away the seeds. I use a soaker hose to water my vegetable garden, because it’s so large. I also add a layer of compost to my soil because it’s clay and that helps the water soak through properly.”

TenTen and Anko added the compost and loosened the plants. Ino did the watering, because she had some experience with plants through her mother’s flower shop.

TenTen, Anko, and Ino also added a layer of mulch, made of hay, straw, leaves, and sawdust. Then they pulled out weeds, cut away the dead parts of the growing plants, and as their last duty they put together a series of stakes to help support the garden. This last part required a lot of basic carpentry, and they bickered lazily back and forth as they crafted the stakes and then figured out the correct way to place them in the garden.

By the end, their hands were covered in dirt, dust, and splinters and their fingernails were caked with soil. But the garden was transformed and they had done a good job.

“Full marks,” said the old woman, beaming.

“That’s mission one: succeeded,” said Ino in satisfaction. They were perfectionistic enough that this pleased them greatly. Kurenai, who had gone off and left them to it, came back and congratulated them on a job well done.

“All on your own, too,” said Kurenai. “I thought you might need some practice on doing missions without me.”

“You just didn’t want to help,” Anko grumbled.

Kurenai smiled in amusement, cheerful. “You have no proof of that,” she said.

-

Taking Kurenai’s advice that they should “get to know each other”, TenTen had the idea that all three of them should visit each person’s home. “You can tell a lot about a person based on how they live,” she said. “Anko, what about you?” 

She and Ino both turned to Anko, inexorably curious.

“I don’t know if you want to visit my house...” Anko said, uncomfortable. Then she added, “But alright, I guess.”

She took them after a mission down the road and to a local orphanage. They stood outside the shabby but functional institution, watching kids play on the front lawn.

“You’re an orphan, Anko?” TenTen asked, something almost pitying in her tone. Ino had become expressionless.

“Well.” Anko shrugged. “Yeah. I don’t remember my parents, so don’t go feeling sorry for me. That’s just the way it is. I originally wanted to become a ninja because of the status it allowed. You know. I wanted to be somebody.”

They walked up the steps and through the door. A little boy barged into them, sticking out his tongue. “Anko! Ugly Anko!” he shouted. 

Anko gave him a hard noogie. “Shut up, you little brat -!” she growled.

“Anko! What’s going on?” An older woman bustled up to them, frowning.

Anko suddenly straightened and looked down at her boots, sullen and shy. “These are my new ninja teammates,” she said, gesturing to Ino and TenTen. 

The older woman didn’t glare at them, necessarily. Her face just seemed etched in a permanent scowl. “Hello,” she said brusquely.

Anko edged toward the hallway and then fled down it. “Come on,” she muttered to the other two, uncomfortable. 

“Who was that?” TenTen asked as they walked down the hall.

“That was the matron,” said Anko, hard to read. They entered a tiny, cramped little single room with a double bed. It was scattered with ninja equipment. In the center of the floor was a tiny, portable stove with a tea kettle set over it. A delicately engraved pot for tea and a set of tea packets sat near the stove. Anko’s kimono from the day of her Genin test was hung on the back of the door. Another pair of equally intricate black boots and some spare fishnet armor were spread across the bed.

“So.” She waved needlessly. “Here it is.”

Next, they went to Ino’s place. It was as different from Anko’s as night was from day, and Ino tried hard not to be embarrassed by that. She took them through her mother’s flower shop, saying hi to her mother at the front counter. 

“Hey, Mom,” she said. “These are my teammates.”

Ino’s mother was a dignified, staid woman with a straight back and a tight bun of brown hair. She wore a brooch and a high collar and held the appearance of being naturally very strict.

“Hello,” she allowed, nodding coldly.

“They want to see home,” said Ino.

“Ah, excellent. Ume?” Mrs Yamanaka turned to another worker. “Man the counter for me.” They took Anko and TenTen out back behind the shop, entering a stately clan compound with traditional shoji screen doors. They walked down a polished wood hallway.

“My family’s a ninja clan,” said Ino informatively. “Our mind control abilities run in the family. My father works for ANBU Black Ops in the interrogation unit.”

They knocked and entered Mr Yamanaka’s office. He had long blond hair and blue eyes like Ino’s, and he also appeared to be a very serious man. 

“Inoichi,” said Mrs Yamanaka, “these are Ino’s new ninja teammates.” 

Yamanaka Inoichi went around the desk and shook each girl’s hand, solemn. Anko’s eyebrows had risen and TenTen was smiling uncomfortably.

“I’m glad to meet you,” said Inoichi.

“Yes, we expect great things from our daughter,” said Mrs Yamanaka.

Anko and TenTen looked sideways at Ino, who looked away and shrugged in embarrassment. 

Then Ino took them with some amount of relief back to her room, which was stuffed to bursting with outfits and makeup, and had motivational sayings taped up on the walls. “I’m their only child,” she admitted, sheepish. “I’m their little princess, so I get everything.”

TenTen’s home was last. TenTen took them to a cozy little house and they went inside to find a living room filled with antiques, knitted throw blankets, warm furniture, and pet birds in cages. A sickly, overweight old woman was breathing heavily in an armchair.

“Grandma,” said TenTen, bowing. “These are my teammates.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” said Ino and Anko. 

TenTen’s grandmother smiled. “I’m so glad to see my granddaughter making friends,” she said hoarsely. “She spends far too much time taking care of me. I’m not as well as I used to be.”

TenTen took her teammates up to her room, which was filled with hanging crystals and dream catchers, had vast and complex star charts taped to the walls, and had a set of intricate antique swords hanging near the wardrobe. A series of books on psychics and self hypnosis filled the bookshelves. Scattered on the bed was a pack of tarot cards.

“Where are your parents?” Anko asked curiously. “Are they dead?”

“Very subtle, Anko,” Ino congratulated her sarcastically. 

“Well, I was just asking,” said Anko defensively.

TenTen had her back turned to them. “No,” she said, her tone strained. “They left when I was little. I haven’t seem them since.”

There was a heavy silence in the room for a moment. “Well, that sucks,” Anko said at last, faux casual. “Their daughter’s going to become one of the best kunoichi in Konoha and they won’t even get to see it.”

TenTen smiled.

-

TenTen lead their next mission. They had to go to a home for the elderly and spend time with its occupants.

“Do whatever they want, have fun with them, and fill the room with chatter,” TenTen advised. “They’re bored and lonely. They need company.”

Ino spent some time playing chess with a thin old man with a wry and dirty sense of humor. She smiled along with him and tried not to be offended by his crass jokes. She also beat him at chess, because no way was she holding back just because he was old.

“You’re really good at this,” the old man told her. “It’s kind of scary.”

Ino smirked, self satisfied.

Anko’s duty left her extremely bored. The old woman wanted Anko to read to her. Anko picked up a classical book and began reading. Pretty soon, she was shifting in her seat, bored and anxious -- this whole “sitting quietly” thing just wasn’t for her.

At last, she came upon an idea. “What if I act the scenes out for you?” she asked. “Come on.” She grinned. “At least it would be entertaining.”

So Anko threw her arms around, shouting and acting out each scene enthusiastically. She got the old woman laughing, and after that the mission was more fun.

TenTen was in her element. She arranged the old lady’s pillows, put her feet up, made her tea, offered interesting conversation, and watched TV with her. The client called her “a sweet girl,” and TenTen smiled.

-

“Kurenai-sensei,” said Anko curiously, “we know each other better, but we don’t know about you. What do you do when we’re not meeting together as a team?” 

Kurenai paused in surprise. They saw consternation pass across her face.

“Come on,” said Anko, “we won’t laugh.” And Ino and TenTen agreed. 

“Alright,” said Kurenai at last, blushing. “I... I go on dates. I’m actually in a relationship. And it’s sort of private, so don’t go telling anyone about it,” she added sternly, when their faces transformed into expressions of glee.

“With who? With who?” the girls asked.

“Sarutobi Asuma,” said Kurenai. “The Hokage’s Jounin level son. We used to be teammates, back when we were Genin.”

So Kurenai’s teammates demanded to meet this Sarutobi Asuma. They came along with Kurenai for her next date, and when Asuma appeared outside the restaurant, Ino pointed.

“It’s the lazy cigarette addict!” she and Anko shouted, and Asuma looked puzzled and annoyed.

“Please excuse my teammates,” said TenTen, smiling sheepishly and bowing.

“I’m not lazy,” said Asuma. “I’m just... very laid back.”

“We’ll have you know that if you do anything to hurt our Sensei, you’ll hear about it from us,” said Anko fiercely, and her teammates agreed.

Asuma met Kurenai’s eyes and they shared an amused smile. Then Asuma raised his hands. “Consider me warned, and appropriately cowed,” he said in amusement.

“By the way, how are our classmates?” Ino asked, curious despite herself.

“Hinata, Kiba, and Shino are all from ninja clans,” said Asuma. “They all have a good work ethic, too, which is refreshing -- though Hinata is easily depressed and gives up easily. I’m not sure what to do about it -- I can’t really relate. I think she would have liked having someone like Kurenai to look up to.”

“That girl’s the heir to the Hyuuga clan. She’s got a lot of hope riding on her,” said Kurenai worriedly.

“Well, so do I,” said Ino, puzzled. “You don’t see me complaining.”

“Not everyone’s as strong as you, Ino,” said Kurenai gently. “Plus, Hinata’s only one girl, and she’s all alone.”

“Well, why doesn’t she come with us on our next mission?” said TenTen brightly. “We’ll be able to help her out!”

“Yeah! We’ll whip her into shape!” said Anko positively.

Kurenai met Asuma’s eye and they shared another smile. “I think that’s a great idea.”


	3. Chapter Three

3.

Team Ten was gathered outside the mission assignments room that day, waiting for Kurenai and Hinata to show up.

“Hey, Hinata, how are you doing?!” Ino and TenTen looked around at Anko’s shout. Anko was standing in a wide, strong stance, smirking confidently. Hinata, standing silently before her with shoulders hunched, was as different as night was from day. She had short dark hair and the trademark silver Hyuuga X-ray eyes. She kept those eyes on the floor.

“H-hello,” she said softly.

“Come on, Hinata. You’re a strong kunoichi,” said TenTen, smiling positively.

“Yeah,” Ino added. “Put your head up and wear it proud!” 

“R-right.” Hinata’s eyes widened and her head straightened instinctively. “It’s just -- I’m not particularly strong.” She winced.

“So, keep trying until you are.” Anko shrugged, nonplussed. “See? Simple.”

Just then, Kurenai walked up. “Okay, girls,” she said brightly. “Let’s go get today’s mission.”

They walked into the mission assignments room. “Team Ten, ready for missions,” said Kurenai. “Well, Team Ten, and guest,” she added sheepishly at the mission assigner’s curious look.

The man shrugged. “Alright,” he said, and he handed out their mission paper. “Since you’ve been succeeding at so many missions lately, today you’re getting one of what we call our ‘higher level D ranks.’”

Ino, TenTen, and Anko looked excited. Hinata looked dreading, but also curious despite herself.

“You will be taking a box full of important documents from Konoha to the Fire Country capital,” said the mission assigner. “Obviously, you are not to read these documents. No one is after these documents, either, which is why this mission is assigned to Genin.”

“However, I will also be accompanying you, just in case,” Kurenai added. “Okay, girls. Let’s move out.” They walked outside the mission assignments room, and Kurenai said, “Go home, and pack sleeping bags, tents, and ninja nutritional supplements and snacks for our journey. We travel to the capital on foot, taking turns carrying the crate. We meet at the gates outside the village in one hour.”

The girls left, excited. They had never been outside Konoha before. Hinata was pulled along behind them.

-

There was a lot of fighting between the girls of Team Ten at first over who got to hold the crate, until they realized it was heavy and the walk was long, and then it became a war over who didn’t get to hold the crate.

The walk through the forests of Fire Country quickly turned boring. To alleviate their boredom, Anko suggested they play games of I Spy, which Kurenai allowed only because it would help them keep abreast of their surroundings. Hinata hung back, and as the day wore on she kept getting farther and farther back.

“Hey, Hinata, don’t fall behind!” Anko called back curiously.

“I know, I’m sorry,” said Hinata, looking down instinctively and fiddling with her hands. “I’m just tired.”

“Well, so are we,” said Ino shortly.

TenTen was kinder. “Why don’t you distract yourself by playing games of I Spy with us? I bet, with your family’s special eyes, you’d be really good at it.”

So Hinata did play with them, and slowly she started winning. Anko swore as she lost for about the hundredth time. “I’m sorry,” said Hinata immediately, her brief happiness and confidence fading into misery.

Anko paused in surprise. “Well, don’t apologize,” she said incredulously. “You’re supposed to be trying to win!”

“Right. Sorry.”

“Hinata,” Ino advised in amusement, “stop saying ‘sorry’.” Hinata visibly repressed herself from saying the word again. TenTen patted her sympathetically on the back.

They broke that night and made camp out in a forest clearing. Ino complained half heartedly about all the bugs as she set up tents. TenTen and Hinata built a fire. Anko went out with Kurenai with a vicious kind of eagerness and killed their dinner, bringing it back to cook over the fire. “That was fun,” Anko admitted, rubbing her hands together evilly.

They all sat up late, talking from their sleeping bags, and they asked Hinata a little bit more about herself.

“Hinata, what’s your family story?” said TenTen curiously. “You’re from a major ninja clan, right?”

“Y-yes.” Hinata looked down. “My mother died when I was very young. My father is the head of the clan, and I have a little sister named Hanabi.”

“That’s so cool! I always wanted a little sister,” said Ino admiringly.

“Me, too,” said TenTen, smiling. “Do you guys get along?”

“Well... we are constantly competing for our father’s attention, each vying to be heir. And Hanabi’s usually winning,” said Hinata, still looking down. She seemed to feel she had said too much, and she was rather taciturn for the rest of the night.

“It must suck,” said Anko thoughtfully after Hinata had gone to sleep. “Having all that expectation riding on you and your family. Still, she’s sort of... I mean, she’s sort of weak willed. It’s a little annoying.”

Ino and TenTen couldn’t help but agree. They felt sorry for Hinata, but they had encountered in her someone who was utterly alien and unlike them in every way. Even Haruno Sakura’d had more in common with them than Hinata. She, at least, went after her crush. Hinata didn’t really seem to confidently go after anything.

-

They made it to the capital the next day, and found it in the middle of a festival. They delivered their crate of important documents to some big manor house, and then they went out into the festival, taking some time to enjoy themselves. 

Anko and Kurenai sampled all the drinks and snacks. TenTen played games. Ino bought souvenirs and knick knacks. Hinata was sort of closed off until they tried to include her and then, becoming more at ease, she pointed at each person dressed in formal wear and guessed what rank they were based on their clothing.

“How do you know all this?” Ino asked curiously.

“My father has schooled me in diplomatic relations,” said Hinata, pleased. “It was one of the only lessons I enjoyed.”

“What else do you enjoy?” TenTen asked.

“I enjoy flower pressing, making herbal salves and poultices, and baking sweet buns,” said Hinata softly. So that was how they learned a little bit more about Hyuuga Hinata.

They traveled back to Konoha and parted with Hinata at the gates.

“It’s been interesting,” said Ino.

“And fun,” TenTen agreed, smiling.

“Y-yes.” Hinata bowed, her voice soft. “It was nice to meet you.”

“Hey, Hinata!” Anko called after her as she left. Hinata turned around. “Remember, head up. Just because you’re quiet doesn’t mean you’re weak.”

Hinata’s eyes widened in surprise, and then she smiled a little. “Right,” she said. “Thank you.”

-

Kurenai’s house was on the edge of the village, set a ways back into the trees. Ino, TenTen, and Anko all met up outside there one evening with sleeping bags and plans for fun. Anko pounded on the door and when Kurenai opened it up, they all cried, “Slumber party!”

Kurenai smiled in exasperation and stood aside, letting them inside to the house. 

The slumber party was the most fun any of them had had in a while. They painted their nails, did each other’s hair, shouted themselves silly over some cool action adventure movies, danced around and sang to Paramore songs, pigged out on snacks, and played games of truth or dare. 

They all learned something about each other during the games of truth or dare. They learned about Ino’s friendship with Sakura gone horribly awry, and her attempts to compete with Sakura over Sasuke to make Sakura feel more confident. TenTen admitted she’d found Hyuuga Neji from their graduating class very attractive. Anko said that when she was little, she’d often wished for some kind parents who would adopt her and take her away. Kurenai admitted that her first sex had been in a public restroom, something that deeply embarrassed her to this day. (They all had a good, long laugh over that one.)

“As per slumber party regulations,” Anko said once, officially, “no one is allowed to go to sleep. The first person who does will have whipped cream squirted on top of them.”

So, naturally, TenTen fell asleep and Anko squirted whipped cream on top of her. TenTen woke up, howled in rage, and chased a hysterically laughing Anko around the room.

TenTen and Kurenai also personality profiled each of them, Kurenai using her Keirsey Temperament Sorter personality handbook, and TenTen using her astrology charts and trusty Harry Potter Sorting references. 

Kurenai was a Gemini; her wand was 14 inches, phoenix feather core, supple, made of pine wood; she was a Gryffindor; and she was an ISFJ Protector.

Ino was a Libra on the cusp of Virgo; her wand was 13 1/4 inches, phoenix feather core, hard, made of elder wood; she was a Slytherin; and she was an ESTP Promoter.

Anko was a Scorpio on the cusp of Libra; her wand was 12 inches, dragon heartstring core, quite bendy, made of ash wood; she was a Gryffindor; and she was an ESTJ Supervisor.

TenTen was a Pisces; her wand was 11 inches, phoenix feather core, supple, made of laurel wood; she was a Hatstall between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff; and she was an ENFJ Teacher.

-

“What’s our mission this time, sir?” TenTen asked, walking up to the mission assignments table with her teammates behind her.

The mission assigner looked unusually serious. “They want you to find a missing child,” he admitted, wincing. “Sorry about this. These things are always emotionally fraught.” And he handed them the paper. 

“I might have to help with this one,” Kurenai-sensei admitted.

“Well, let’s start with step one,” Anko suggested. “Where’s the last place the kid was seen?” 

“On the second story balcony of his parents’ house,” said the mission assigner.

-

Team Ten knocked on the door, and a thin, middle-aged man with dark hair and a worried face opened it. “Yes?” he asked softly.

“We’ve been assigned to find your four-year-old son,” said Kurenai, sympathetic but firm. “We need to look at the last place he was seen, and if possible, I would also like to see some clothes and toys he used on a regular basis.”

“O-of course.” The man stepped aside quickly to let them through. 

The house they entered was definitely upper end. These people were no lords, but they did alright. There were purple carpets, a nice television set, and a sweeping polished wood staircase.

A tearful round-faced woman came forward. “Oh, do you think you’ll be able to find him?” she asked. She wrung her hands.

“We hope so, ma’am. Please step back,” said Kurenai-sensei, with enviable reserve. Her Genin tried to copy her as the father led them up the stairs and to a vast room filled with children’s toys. There were glass doors onto a balcony on one of the walls.

Kurenai walked out onto the balcony and concentrated silently for a moment. “He didn’t fall,” she confirmed at last. “But he slid down the storm drain onto the ground.”

The mother gasped in relief, placing a hand over her heart. “So he could be alive,” she said, emotional.

“He could be. I do not feel him below us.” Kurenai was still frowning slightly.

“How are you doing that, Sensei?” Anko asked, coming up beside her. “How do you know all that?” 

“I am employing chakra sensing,” said Kurenai. “I can guess at the boy’s chakra signature based on its leftover residue on the toys around us, and then I track the residue from there to wherever he is. A signature on these toys disappeared into that forest.” She pointed at the the pathway that disappeared into the trees. “It was apparently alone.”

“Of course it was,” said the mother, bewildered.

“What I mean, ma’am, is that he hasn’t been kidnapped,” said Kurenai evenly. “And that’s a good sign.”

“Can you teach us that chakra sensing thing?” TenTen asked curiously.

Kurenai thought for a moment. Then she bent down and picked up a toy, a ball, holding it out to them. “Connect your chakra signature to the chakra area around the ball,” she said. “Reach out with your chakra, and touch the ball.”

They did, each placing a hand on the ball, and after a moment their eyes widened. “There are two signatures on the ball,” Ino was the first person to say. She sounded awed.

“Exactly. One is a dog’s. Knowing the difference between an animal’s and a person’s comes with time.” Kurenai stood straight. “Now, let’s head into that forest.”

They went out of the house and trekked out into the forest. They followed the winding trail of Kurenai’s sensing, taking note of little things along the way -- footprints, brushed aside leaves. The little feet went along the trail for a while before veering off, further into the woods.

The trail stopped at a certain place and they spread out to search. It was grim work -- looking for traces of blood, looking for a tiny body around trees and under leaves.

At last, Ino called out. “I found him!” 

They hurried over and found themselves at the edge of a dry riverbed. There in the bed below, in that long ditch, was a crying little boy with dirt smeared over his face.

“He’s alive,” breathed Ino, smiling.

“It’s okay, kid!” Anko called down to the little boy. “We’re coming to get you!”

Just then, they felt water drops on their cheeks. They looked up. The sky above them was grey, and it was beginning to rain. 

“What do we do, Sensei?” TenTen asked, turning to Kurenai.

“What do you think we should do?” she replied thoughtfully. “This is your mission.”

“Well... we have to ignore the rain,” said Anko determinedly. 

“Exactly. And we’ll have to hoist someone down there to get the boy,” TenTen added. “So we need rope or ninja wire.”

They tied ninja wire around TenTen’s waist, and she fought back her nervousness as Ino and Anko lowered her down into the empty riverbed’s space. They had to hurry. With rain, it would not remain empty for long.

At last, she was low enough that she could reach out for the boy. 

“Here you go, kid,” she said, smiling, gathering the little boy up in her arms. She looked up. “Okay, I’ve got him!” she called upward. Anko started cheering.

Then Anko suddenly slipped on the slick, muddy ground, and fell over the side of the ditch.

Ino was suddenly the only one holding both of them up. She strained, gritting her teeth against the pain. For a moment, she felt hopeless, but then she steeled herself.

There was no time to be hopeless. Her teammates needed her.

Slowly, Ino began pulling all three people up to the embankment. After a moment, she felt a pair of arms around her and realized Kurenai was helping her. Together, they pulled TenTen, Anko, and the little boy back up onto the muddy embankment.

-

“Higaro! You deserve the scolding of your life!” Crying, the mother knelt and hugged her little boy. The father still seemed to be in shock.

Sweaty and muddy, Team Ten looked at the reunited family for a moment. Then they glanced at each other and grinned. 

“Mission accomplished.”

-

Certain things, only girls understood. 

Anko and Ino were standing outside TenTen’s house one day, waiting for her to come down so they could leave for their next mission. But when TenTen stormed out, she seemed a little teary, and was short and irritable when they questioned her about it.

They began the walk to meet with Kurenai, but TenTen was quiet, and positively sulky.

“Are you on your period?” Ino asked suddenly. 

TenTen stopped and stared at her. “Yes,” she said at last. 

“Oh. Well, that explains everything. Why didn’t you just say so?” Anko asked casually, and she handed TenTen a bar of chocolate from her pocket.

TenTen smiled. It was good, having friends.

-

At the same time as they were making friends and doing D ranks, Team Ten was also training furiously with Kurenai.

Anko’s training was the most detailed, because Kurenai wanted Anko to inherit her illusions specialty. Anko was shown the genjutsu ropes: disguising and binding abilities, stealth genjutsu, what-you-do-to-me-is-what-you-feel genjutsu, and nasty sensory attacks. Illusions took fine chakra control and a vicious imagination; Anko could feel herself improving quickly. She also got better at breaking out of other people’s illusions as she gained more mastery over her own.

Ino, on the other hand, specialized in ninjutsu. She worked with her father mastering the Yamanaka clan’s ninjutsu -- not only mind control and disruption, but body control and disruption as well. The only thing was that whatever happened physically to the person being controlled, would also happen to the controller as well. 

When Ino voiced her concerns about this flaw to her Sensei, Kurenai went to the private Jounin-access-only spell archives. She got out two earth ninjutsu scrolls and two wind ninjutsu scrolls (wind and earth being Ino’s elemental affinities). One wind ninjutsu blew, one wind ninjutsu cut; one earth ninjutsu made an earth wall, one earth ninjutsu buried the opponent. Kurenai set Ino to mastering these scrolls, telling her that any good ninjutsu specialist could attack as well as capture. As long as Ino only captured someone who had already been injured before the capture, the injury would not transfer to her.

Kurenai helped TenTen with her taijutsu. Kurenai had mastered taijutsu long ago, to counter those who thought an illusions specialist was not good in close combat. She wanted TenTen to be a good overall close combat fighter, so she sparred with TenTen constantly and taught her the ins and outs of taijutsu. 

However, TenTen also wanted to be a weapons master, and for this Kurenai needed outside help. She put TenTen in touch with Uzuki Yuugao, a very serious purple-haired woman in ANBU who also happened to be a weapons specialist. Yuugao had no current Genin of her own, so she was neutral to the idea of training one from another team. Yuugao expanded TenTen’s knowledge of different kinds of weapons: chains, nunchuks, claws, senbon, kunai, shuriken, explosive tags, ninja wire, swords, and whips. Storage scrolls were invaluable in holding so many different kinds of weapons, which was something TenTen learned quickly.

Kurenai increased her team's chakra sensing training as well.

TenTen, Anko, and Ino also sparred with each other -- all the time. Ino and TenTen got better at breaking out of genjutsu. Anko and Ino got better at defending themselves against hand to hand combat -- Anko by hiding herself from it and attacking sneakily, Ino by either controlling the opponent or blowing them away. Anko and TenTen got better at guarding against control attacks -- by constantly moving to avoid Ino getting a clear lock on them -- and against elemental attacks -- for instance, TenTen learned that when fighting a wind user, it was best to focus on explosive tags to disorient the wind user’s senses.

Kurenai could see her three girls rapidly improving. She rode them hard and they worked harder.

In fact, she thought it was almost time for a C rank.


	4. Chapter Four

4.

When Team Ten walked into the mission assignments room that afternoon, Kurenai-sensei had a little surprise for them.

“Team Ten, reporting for duty,” said Kurenai. Then, with a slight smile, “We’re requesting a C rank today.”

The reaction was immediate. All three girls’ faces transformed. They gasped in delight, brightening up, jumping a little on the balls of their feet.

Kurenai was amused. “I take it that’s okay with you three?”

“YES!”

“It sure as hell is!”

Kurenai didn’t think she’d seen them that thrilled since they’d passed her Genin test. “Alright,” she said, turning back to the mission assigner. “So, what have you got for us?”

The mission assigner’s eyebrows had risen. “Are you sure, Yuuhi-san?” he asked. “It is unusual, for such new rookies to already be given higher duties.”

“I’m proud of my team and I’d like to show them off,” said Kurenai simply, shrugging. “They’ve been working hard and I’m looking to reward that. Their training has gone spectacularly, they push each other to be the best, and they already have a reputation for being able to handle higher level D ranks. This is the next logical step.”

Team Ten tried hard not to look too proud of themselves. Some smugness showed through anyway.

“Very well,” said the mission assigner. “You’re their Jounin-sensei; I trust your judgment. The most current C rank we have on the books comes from a refugee camp from River Country.”

“Refugee camp?” Ino echoed, confused. Her teammates looked similar.

“Their village was destroyed in the last war. They’ve been displaced. They’re very poor and have made up a camp in River Country. How they managed to find the money to pay for a ninja mission, I don’t know. They must be desperate. A group of bandits has been praying on their camp and they want protection from them. You are to protect the camp and capture the bandits. They’re non-ninja, not even really samurai. That’s why this is only a C rank.”

“So are we going there alone?” Kurenai asked.

“No. Two refugees have come from the camp to accompany you. A father, Hiroki, and his teenage daughter, Kaiya. Send in the two refugees from River Country!” he called toward the door.

And in walked two defeated-looking people in shabby clothes. They were both dark-haired, the older man with a pot belly, the younger girl pretty but half-hidden behind him shyly.

Anko bowed. “Don’t worry, sir and ma’am!” she said determinedly. “We’ll protect you!”

Ino and TenTen were briefly surprised, but then they bowed as well.

The older man looked uncertainly at the mission assigner. “Were these the oldest you could find?” he asked worriedly.

“Ninja age differently than civilians do,” said Kurenai, stepping forward before her Genin could get indignant. “This is all you’ll need for some bandits, no matter how vicious they are. In any case, I’ll also be there, and I’m of the highest rank in the village after ANBU Black Operative.”

-

They met outside the gates of Konoha with their packs and started trekking out on foot toward River Country. They camped in Fire Country forests the first night, before reaching the border by midday of the next day.

“Passes?” the guard at the checkout point asked. Kurenai handed over their passes into River Country. He scanned them and then let them through.

Hiroki and Kaiya were uncomplaining and quiet, but they seemed to tire more easily than the ninja, not used to the heavy pace the ninja set. Anko offered to carry one of them, and they refused quickly.

“We’ll be fine,” said Hiroki stubbornly.

TenTen then tried to distract them by asking them about themselves, but they proved taciturn. Ino noted to herself that they were nervous and on edge, their eyes swiveling around at every turn. 

“These bandits must have really done a number on them,” she muttered to her teammates that night at camp (which was in a River Country cave full of stalactites and stalagmites). “They’re like a couple of scared rabbits.”

Kurenai had her Genin keep around them in a guard, walked in front of the group at all times, and slowed down the pace a little for the civilians with them.

River Country was very mountainous -- they did a lot of hiking -- and its landscape could change starkly. Around the waterways River Country was famous for, there was green and plenty, which was why Team Ten stayed by the waterways. Out beyond, however, there was only flat, dry wasteland.

“After River Country is Wind Country,” Kurenai informed them once, “which is mostly desert, even near the sea.”

They were hiking through a mountain pass when all of a sudden, there was a whistling sound above them. Anko looked up -- and then her eyes widened and she shoved her two teammates and the clients out of the way. A spear landed right in the center of where they had been.

Then bandits, three big, tough men in rough clothes, were raining down on them from the cliff above with cries and sword thrusts. Each Genin took one bandit, Kurenai staying back with the terrified clients and watching warily.

Ino dodged around the slashing sword and made a hand seal. The unsuspecting bandit’s mind was immediately taken over, as Ino slumped into unconsciousness. Said bandit sat sedately on the ground and didn’t do a thing.

“Kazue!” another bandit called, “what are you doing? Move!” Kazue thumbed his nose at his supposed comrade. Said comrade growled and moved to attack Ino’s body, but Anko stepped in between them.

“Don’t forget,” she said, grinning, “I’m your opponent.” Then she moved to attack him, he slashed through her -- and the illusion fazed out. The bandit had just enough time to wonder where the hell she was before his feet were swept from behind by some invisible force and he was hit over the head.

Meanwhile, TenTen was matching sword for sword with the third bandit. He was a weird one -- silent and staring blankly at her, his mouth open slightly. Despite this zombie-ish appearance, he was wicked fast and she could barely keep up with him.

Just then, the one being attacked by Anko cried out: “Isao! Retreat!” 

He was apparently the leader, because Isao immediately retreated, jumping up and away. The leader disengaged from Anko and grabbed up Kazue’s sedate form, running away with it. Ino retreated back into her own body and put up an earth wall to stop them. The leader punched right through it. Running under a hail of weapons from one of TenTen’s storage scrolls, they retreated.

Team Ten stood back in the silence. Ino pouted. “I can’t believe we didn’t get them,” she said, disappointed.

“You got them to run away...” said Hiroki, sounding awed.

“Exactly,” Kurenai added. “And right now, that’s enough. They were testing our abilities, just like we were testing theirs. They retreated because their leader realized you were giving them a run for their money.

“Now, let’s continue on to the refugee camp.”

Kurenai turned around -- and paused. Kaiya was sitting on the ground, collapsed, breathing hard. Her face was pale and sweaty, her eyes hollow; she trembled where she sat. 

Kurenai immediately knelt down. “Are you injured?” she asked urgently. She didn’t think any weapons had made it past her, but...

“No,” Kaiya breathed. “No. It’s just...” She trembled, suppressing the tears, her eyes shut.

Hiroki knelt in concern beside his daughter. “The one fighting the blonde girl -- Kazue -- he...” Hiroki’s hands curled into fist, his eyes furious and helpless. “He sexually assaulted her. During one of the raids. That’s why she panicked when looking at him.

“It was after that happened that I asked everyone to pool their money together to pay for ninja. I didn’t know what else to do, but I knew we needed protection. The authorities have been... unwilling, to help us.”

Team Ten was immediately indignant. “That’s horrible!” said TenTen, a frown growing on her face.

Kaiya didn’t even seem to hear her. 

“Kaiya,” her father whispered, putting a hand on her shoulder, “they’re gone. He’s gone.”

“Don’t worry, ma’am.” Kurenai stood, her face dark, her presence heavy. For once, the calm teacher was gone, and in her place was a murderous warrior. “We can assure you that will never happen to anyone in your camp again.”

-

They made the refugee camp by nightfall. Tall tents had been erected down the row, whole families living in each tent in embarrassingly close quarters to each other. Children in shabby clothes played around beside parents hunched over the fireside, staring forward emptily. There was a great fire in the center of the camp with a pot of soup over it. That one pot fed the whole camp.

Hiroki led the team into his tent, where an old woman was sitting on a pallet. “Mother,” said Hiroki, “these are the ninja.”

The woman surveyed them, her eyes sharp, as they bowed. “And you’re going to be of use to us, are you?” she barked.

“You better believe it.” Anko grinned, her eyes hard.

“Mother,” said Hiroki in excitement, “they scared off the bandits. The bandits ran away!”

The grandmother eyed the ninja suspiciously. “Well,” she said at last, “perhaps they will do something.” Despite her circumstances, she still had not lost her native dignity.

Team Ten lived off their snacks and rations from their packs, not wanting to take any food away from the refugees, though it was offered to them. They sat around in a circle with Hiroki and his family. 

“That boy, Kazuho, who got sick,” said the grandmother grimly, chewing her food. “He died while you were gone.”

“What did he die of?” asked Anko, caught off guard.

“Malnutrition. This is our only meal of the day.”

There was silence for a moment.

“So,” said TenTen at last in concern, “do people have jobs? Or go to school?”

“There is no school,” said Grandmother. “Only a former teacher who teaches the adults letters, for job applications. But we don’t get any jobs because we don’t have houses. And we don’t have houses because we can’t find jobs. And because we can’t find jobs, food is scarce. So people die.” Her expression was tough, unfeeling, but her eyes were cast downward.

Team Ten exchanged helpless looks. They were upset, but didn’t know how to help.

“We’ll save you from the bandits,” said Kurenai at last. “You no longer have to worry about that.”

-

Team Ten spent a day in the camp. They wandered around, talking to people, gathering reports on the bandits. At last, they grouped together to discuss their findings.

“From what I can tell, the leader’s name is Aito,” said Anko. “He’s smart, serious, logical, and cold.”

“Then there’s Kazue, who’s crass and violent. Basically a complete asshole,” said Ino, nodding.

“And the one I fought was Isao,” said TenTen. “He’s quiet, but unstable. Dangerous, unpredictable. A definite weirdo.”

“What about how they fight?” Kurenai asked, eyes narrowed in thought.

“It seems to be pretty basic: stones, fists, and torches,” said Ino, shrugging. “They use raw power to overpower their weaker adversaries, and then they take and do what they want.”

“They must have camp set up somewhere around here,” said Anko. “I say we find them and kick their asses!” She pounded a fist into her hand.

“But won’t they be expecting us?” TenTen asked worriedly.

“Even if they are, what can they do? We’ve had years of hard training,” said Anko, grinning.

“Be careful, Anko,” said Kurenai. “We may be stronger, but never get arrogant.” She thought for a moment. “If they haven’t attacked by tomorrow,” she decided, “we’ll go looking for them.”

-

They were heading back to Hiroki’s family’s tent that evening, to go to sleep, when all of a sudden something was tossed into the midst of the camp. All four ninja tensed, but at first it didn’t seem that dangerous. It was just some broken glass jar.

But then, as they looked closer, they could see smoke coming out of the jar... and could feel themselves growing tired...

“Shit! It’s a sedative!” they heard Kurenai say, just before they lost consciousness.

-

When they woke up on the ground, there were cries and mass panic in the camp. They sat up, and Anko quickly turned to the wailing woman next to her. “What’s going on?” she asked.

“My family heirlooms!” the woman was wailing. “All my family heirlooms have been stolen! They were the only valuable things I had left...” She was teary.

Team Ten grouped together. “This has to be Aito’s doing,” said Kurenai seriously. “He must have decided we were too strong to deal with normally, so they knocked everyone out first.”

“Now they’ve taken everything,” Ino despaired.

TenTen stood. “You’re right, Anko,” she said determinedly. “Now, we need to find them.”

Anko looked surprised for a moment. Then she stood and nodded, smirking. 

-

With promises to get all the valuables back -- because the campers were starting to get angry with them, questioning what good ninja were for -- Team Ten retreated into the surrounding hills. Kurenai had her Genin practice their chakra sensing as they tried to track down the men from before. 

Eventually, they found them, and hid over a surrounding cliff in the darkness, looking down and listening at the fire-lit camp below.

“Too bad we couldn’t fuck ‘em. That dark haired bitch wasn’t too bad.”

“Kazue, you never fail to stun me with your level of sophistication,” said Aito in distaste.

“Oh, sure, Mr All High and Mighty, pretend you’ve never wanted to fuck one of our victims,” said Kazue grinning. Isao snickered.

Angry, Kurenai’s Genin turned to her, and she just nodded.

Ino went first. She made a hand seal and entered the mind of Aito, who twitched but otherwise seemed unchanged.

“Hey, Aito, you okay?” Kazue asked curiously. 

“Yeah, just tired,” said Ino pretending to be Aito, rubbing at the back of his neck.

Anko went next. She weaved an illusion around Aito, making it look like he was still sitting at the fireside. Then the real Ino-Aito stood up, hidden, and walked in between his two teammates, taking out his swords. He slit both of their throats before either of them even knew what was happening.

Aito’s shock was enough that Ino was shoved out of his head. He looked up, saw them, and let out an anguished cry, charging toward them. TenTen jumped down to defend her team, taking out her own sword. With furious flashes of steel, TenTen and Aito clashed against each other, over and over again.

But Aito was emotional, and thus sloppy. And that was all TenTen needed.

She pushed his sword aside, whirled inside his guard, and when he moved to slit her throat she put her fist against his stomach and then slid her claws out of her sleeve and onto her hand.

They pierced right through Aito’s stomach, causing severe internal organ damage.

As Aito’s sword was taken neatly out of his limp hand by Kurenai, and as Team Ten jumped down to the ground around TenTen, Aito fell back hard, his eyes still in shock. He lay there, and as they stood above him, Ino had to ask in distaste:

“How did you guys grow up? I mean, what would drive people to be such complete and utter dicks?”

Aito gasped out a breath and snarled, “Fuck you.” Then, at last, he said, “We grew up homeless orphans. We never had anything. You want anything in this world, you have to take it by force. And I sure as hell don’t regret what we did.” His tone was defiant.

“Well,” said Kurenai dryly, “we’ll see what the Konoha authorities have to say about that. You’re going to jail.”

-

When the bodies were dumped down in front of the campers, there was a heavy silence for a moment. Everyone stared at their fallen oppressors. Anko dumped the bag of valuables down next to the bodies.

“Come and get it,” she said casually, hand on her hip. 

People slowly came forward, crying out in joy as they retrieved their items. Kaiya, after a pause, walked right up to Kazue’s body and kicked it. She kicked it again, harder. Hiroki placed a concerned hand on her shoulder. Kaiya clutched at herself, her eyes in tears.

“Thank you,” she sobbed at last, bending over as if breaking. “Thank you for killing him.”

-

All the campers gathered the next morning to wish Team Ten farewell. 

“You saved us,” said Grandmother matter of factly. “We are forever in your debt.”

Various thanks came from other campers, as everyone went around to shake their hands. It was gratifying. Anko was grinning, sheepish, and Ino and TenTen were smiling incredulously. Kurenai was warmly pleased. It was good for her Genin, she felt, to see that their actions caused results in the other people around them.

They at last left the camp and started the long walk home to Konoha. (Aito, who had only been given minimal medical assistance, was dragged along unconscious behind them.) 

“I feel like we didn’t do enough,” TenTen admitted at last. “It’s kind of frustrating.”

“Yeah, I know what you mean,” Ino said, unusually somber and thoughtful. “All those people live in horrible circumstances. I mean, so we got rid of some bandits? So what? They’re vulnerable enough that it’s probably going to happen again anyway.”

“... That sucks,” said Anko in realization. “But...” She frowned. “What else can we do?”

They turned to Kurenai.

“Well,” said Kurenai, “usually, the only people who bother to help groups like that are charities and nonprofits. But I don’t know of any in Konoha that go to help war refugees.”

There was silence for a moment. “So, why don’t we make one?” TenTen asked at last. They turned to her curiously. “What? We could,” she told her teammates.

“That would be a lot of work,” said Kurenai cautiously.

“But it’s a good idea!” said Anko, brightening as she cottoned on, and Ino nodded in agreement. “Yeah, let’s start our own charity for war refugees! How about it, Sensei?”

“... We can try,” said Kurenai, smiling slightly. She felt rather proud of her Genin. “But what are we going to call it?”

“How about... The Kaiya Organization,” said Ino. “Kaiya means forgiveness. Think of different groups forgiving each other for past war crimes. It’s the perfect name!”

And so the idea for the Kaiya Organization was born.


	5. Chapter Five

5.

Team Ten’s next D rank was a week-long one.

TenTen knocked on the house’s door the first day, her two teammates standing behind her. A housekeeper opened the door. All beyond her was darkness, lit only by the light of a single TV. The housekeeper looked nervous.

“Um... we’re here to help Arigawa-san with his daily physical therapy?” Ino said uncertainly. Arigawa Saitoh, a 40-year-old man, had had a leg injury. He had hired help from ninja to assist him in his first week of physical recovery.

“Of course, come in,” said the housekeeper quietly, subdued. They walked inside to find Arigawa in an armchair with his injured leg up on a cushion, watching the TV. He had silvery hair and messy clothes and he was scowling. He didn’t look at them when they walked in.

“Arigawa-san,” said TenTen hesitantly. “We’re the ninja hired to help you with your physical therapy.” Anko raised an eyebrow, nonplussed.

Arigawa still didn’t look at them. “... Well!” he snapped suddenly at last, making them jump. “Start, then!” He seemed abrupt and irritable.

The mission should in theory have been a basic one. Their job was to help Arigawa with some simple exercises. They were to rotate the ankle, move the foot up and down, bend his knee to his chest and back, raise his leg, and have him do things like contract and relax his leg, or stretch toward his ankle.

The only problem was, Arigawa did not like being told what to do.

“Why do I have to do this!” he snapped. “It’s painful and ridiculous!”

TenTen gave a sigh, trying to be patient. “Sir, it’s the quickest way to get your leg better,” she said.

Anko was less inhibited. “Yeah!” she snapped. “Suck it up!”

“I hired you, so be quiet!” the man yelled back. “And I’m hungry! Somebody make some food for me!”

Arigawa was demanding all through the week. If it wasn’t that he wanted food, it was that he wanted his pillows fluffed or changed, or his chair moved, or the TV channel changed. He was surly, demanding, irritating, and to all appearances quite lazy -- he would not turn on the lights or move from his place in front of the TV.

All four members of Team Ten were quite glad when the week was over.

“I’m sorry he didn’t like us,” said TenTen flatly to the housekeeper just before they left, though in reality she wasn’t sorry at all.

“What are you talking about?” the housekeeper asked in surprise. “That’s happy for him! He loved you!”

Team Ten gaped at her.

-

At the same time as they were doing more D ranks, Kurenai was helping them start the Kaiya Organization.

“First up, we need a plan,” she said, a pen poised over a piece of paper as they all sat in a circle in Ino’s family’s living room -- Ino had offered it up for their use. “What is the objective of our organization, and how are we going to achieve these goals?”

It turned out, getting started was actually the hardest part. After a couple of days of arguing, discussing, and haggling, they finally came up with a workable summary for Kaiya.

'The Kaiya Organization is a charity that comes into contact with civilians displaced by war. It offers them lessons in how to grow their own food, hires workers to build low-income housing for them, and connects sexually assaulted women with advocates who will help them put law enforcement officials responsible for the punishment of their rapists.'

Next, they had to fill out the necessary paperwork to transform their idea into a business. Kurenai also filled out most of the paperwork for them, especially considering she was an adult, something they weren’t considered until they turned sixteen.

To make up for all Kurenai-sensei’s work, TenTen, Anko, and Ino mostly came up with the organization’s website for themselves. They attended night classes in how to create their own website, and Ino took to this part with zeal. She discovered in herself a natural creativity and a knack for organizing things and making them look pretty as well as be functional and easy to navigate.

The Kaiya Organization was on its way.

-

“Okay, kids, let’s move on up here,” TenTen called, smiling. 

She and her team were walking through a forest built on the side of a hill, leading a group of Academy students and their teacher Umino Iruka to a pre-specified destination. The Konoha Environmental Protection Society had requested a tree-planting mission to combat deforestation, and Team Ten had taken it up gladly. They were to help the children plant the trees.

They got to the stretch of flat land and spread out.

“Like this!” Anko and Ino held up seeds and then planted them in the soil, covering them up. Then Team Ten went around with Iruka, watching the kids plant the trees, checking to see if anyone needed any help.

“I haven’t seen you three since the day of your Genin test,” said Iruka in amusement. “That attack was vicious.”

Instead of being embarrassed, Team Ten seemed quite pleased with themselves. 

“Not like this! Like this!” They looked around. A boy with messy brown curls was talking to a girl with red pigtails and a boy with a runny nose. 

“What’s going on?” Team Ten came over.

“They’re doing it wrong,” the brown-haired boy complained, looking up.

“No, actually you’re doing it wrong,” said Ino, putting her hands on her hips. The boy’s eyes widened. “Here. Like this.” Ino bent down to help him, but the boy looked away, puffing his cheeks out.

“Ah, what do you know,” he said in annoyance. Pigtail girl giggled and Ino glared flatly.

TenTen and Anko were kind of amused. “Okay, kid,” said Anko, smiling and stepping forward. “Here’s how you do it.” She took the seed from Ino and demonstrated. Pigtail girl and runny nose boy followed her example.

“Who are you guys, anyway?” TenTen asked curiously.

“I’m Sarutobi Konohamaru,” said Konohamaru readily. “These are my friends Moegi and Udon.”

“Sarutobi? So you’re the Hokage’s grandson? Asuma’s nephew?” Ino asked in surprise.

From from seeming pleased, the boy scowled. “Yeah,” he muttered. “But I don’t like to talk about it.”

“Why not?” TenTen asked.

“Everyone treats me different,” said Konohamaru sullenly. Then he brightened. “I want to be a strong ninja in my own right! Like Naruto-nii-chan!”

“Oh, you know Naruto? How is the knucklehead?” Ino asked affectionately. “He always was the rowdy class clown.”

“He helps us with our ninja homework and plays ninja with us,” said Moegi, smiling. “Right now, he and his team are away on their first C rank.”

“Lucky,” Konohamaru added enviously.

“Naruto plays with you guys, huh?” said Anko thoughtfully.

“I never would have guessed,” TenTen agreed in surprise.

“Naruto-nii-chan’s amazing!” Konohamaru was suddenly aggressive. “And don’t you forget it!”

They put up their hands, smiling sheepishly and sweat dropping. “Of course, of course,” the girls agreed.

They moved on down along the row, and eventually they noticed one child separate from the rest. She had long straight dark hair that half-hid her face, and silver eyes like Hinata’s. Her expression was serious, matter of fact, and confident. She had planted her own tree perfectly.

“Hey,” said TenTen, coming over in concern, “don’t you want to be with the other kids?”

The girl looked up. “Why would I want to do that?” she asked, precocious.

“Oh, I don’t know...” TenTen smiled uneasily. “You’re really good at that. You’ve really got this tree planting thing down.”

“This work is beneath me,” said the girl matter of factly. “My father would say so.”

“Let me guess,” said TenTen dryly, “you’re Hanabi.” She was completely and utterly different from Hinata. “We know your sister,” she added at Hanabi’s surprised look. 

“And it doesn’t matter if you’re the heir to some big fancy clan or whatever,” said Anko suddenly. “If this work isn’t beneath a ninja, it’s not beneath you.”

Hanabi scowled, but said nothing.

“You just don’t want to do it,” Ino added, “because you think it’s boring. And it’s not as boring if you’re with friends. So come on,” she added. “There’s someone I think you should meet.”

And despite Hanabi’s protests, they led her over to Konohamaru and his friends. They watched from a distance as Konohamaru and Hanabi got into an enthusiastic argument. He threw a dirt clod at her, she stiffened in shock and then glared and threw a dirt clod back. Iruka went to break them up, and after that Konohamaru and Hanabi were seemingly perfect friends.

Anko, Ino, and TenTen congratulated each other in amusement on a job well done.

Just then, there was a huge rumbling. The ground began shaking. They looked around -- and saw a wall of earth coming straight at them. Their eyes widened.

“Landslide!” Iruka shouted, and the kids began screaming.

The four ninja sprang into action. They grabbed students, running back and forth to get them to safety before the landslide hit. Iruka was going so much faster than Team Ten were, faster than they’d ever seen somebody move. 

Once they had all the students safely back in the village and were bent over, breathing harshly, with their hands on their knees, Team Ten asked Iruka, “How did you go so fast?”

“I channeled chakra into my legs and feet,” said Iruka, standing. “It’s a useful skill and it helps with chakra control. Ask your Sensei to show it to you sometime.”

-

“Sensei? How do we channel chakra into different parts of our body?”

Kurenai looked around in surprise. Then she answered, “It’s a simple exercise. You channel chakra into the bottoms of your feet, supposedly the hardest place to channel chakra. Then you use it to stick to sideways surfaces, walking up walls and tree trunks. Once you get the hang of stable surfaces, you move on to trying unstable surfaces, like walking over the tops of ponds and creeks. If you can control your feet, the rest of the body should be easy.

“Why would you ask something like that?”

They told her about the incident with Iruka and the Academy students. “I suppose it would be a useful thing for you to learn,” said Kurenai thoughtfully. “Go ahead and try it, on your own time. It takes some practicing to get the hang of it.”

So Team Ten began practicing tree walking and water walking, even as they continued their work in building up the Kaiya Organization. Next up was fundraising and hiring workers. This part of the process required a lot of phone calls and standing on street corners. They put up job listings in shop windows and on all the usual websites, and they used money from their own missions to pay for fundraising advertisements.

It took some time, but slowly they could see themselves growing in strength, even as their nonprofit grew alongside them.

-

“Here you are, enjoy,” said TenTen, smiling through her tiredness, pouring the soup in the latest bowl. For their latest mission, they’d been on their feet for five hours straight, ladling out soup at a homeless shelter. Anko and Ino prepared the soup; TenTen dished it out for the people shuffling past them.

“They all look old,” Anko observed, as sympathetic as she could be. “Even the young ones.” 

“I hate this hairnet, it makes me look hideous,” Ino sniffed. TenTen and Anko stared at her. “Well, that doesn’t mean I don’t want to be here!” she added heatedly. “I’m just stating a fact. It does.”

Anko snickered a little, looked back over at the soup -- and her eyes widened. Her face paled. “Uh -- guys?”

“What is it?” TenTen and Ino asked.

“We don’t have any more ingredients. We’re all out of food,” said Anko in dread. 

“Well -- well, we have to go to the store to get more!” said TenTen, frowning. “And somebody has to stay back and keep the homeless quiet...

“Kurenai,” they said together.

-

“Kurenai-sensei,” they said, walking out into the back alley behind the shelter where Kurenai was sitting, reading. “We need your help.”

She looked up in surprise. “Yes?”

“We have to go to the store to get more ingredients. Can you stay here and keep a tight ship?”

So that was how Kurenai was guilt tripped into trying to entertain a bunch of homeless people at a homeless shelter. First, she ladled out what food was left. Then she stood there, smiling nervously, as the line stayed long and the time stretched on and on.

Now there was some muttering. An occasional shout. People were starting to get angry.

“Okay, okay.” She stood up on the table, speaking loudly so everyone could hear her. “The food will be here in just a few minutes, people. Until then... How about some entertainment?” She smiled brightly.

And then it was a mark of deepest desperation as Kurenai took a page out of Anko’s book and started acting out scenes from her story for the benefit of the gaping homeless people.

-

TenTen, Ino, and Anko were running along the aisles of the grocery store, tearing ingredients off the shelves. “Come on, come on, hurry -!”

They tore through the checkout line and sprinted back toward the shelter. They arrived, out of breath, to find Kurenai singing and dancing on top of the table.

“What the hell -?” Ino and Anko said together, stopping.

TenTen hurried forward with the ingredients, beaming. “Soup time!” she called, and there was a general sigh of relief as everyone swept forward to get food.

Kurenai jumped down to find her Genin snickering to themselves as they put the soup together.

“Great singing voice, Sensei,” said Anko, with an almost-straight face.

“If you ever mention that again,” said Kurenai darkly, “I will send you back to the Academy.”

The Genin kept their heads down, smirking.

-

The culmination of the plans for Kaiya Organization came about when Team Ten rented a warehouse as their base of operations. They put the warehouse together, making it an open floor office plan with no cubicles, good for intermingling and group discussion. Then they sent the workers there, set up a bank account and a list of regular donors, and started operations.

The first thing to do was fan people out and contact different displaced groups, spread awareness of the charity among both people of their own village and people in other places who might need it. Then the healing could begin.

They also established an advisory board for the organization. It included all four members of Team Ten, as well as several adults with significant nonprofit experience. Team Ten would not be the ones actually working regularly in the organization, but they would have a significant amount of say in how it should be run. Additionally, it was, of course, theirs -- a private institution jointly owned by the four of them.

Even as they worked as ninja, they kept a close eye on Kaiya.


	6. Chapter Six

6.

“Team Ten, requesting another C rank,” said Kurenai, coming with her team into the mission assignments room one day.

“Well, Kurenai-san, I have a weird one for you. Will you take a weird one?” the mission assigner asked.

“Sounds interesting,” said Anko, grinning.

“Weird in what way?” Kurenai asked, frowning.

“Weird in that the person paying for the mission wishes to remain anonymous. You are to go to a certain fence near one of the war memorial stones, and he will talk to you from the other side of the fence. There, he will explain the mission details,” replied the mission assigner.

Kurenai shrugged and looked to her Genin. They all seemed curious. “Alright,” she agreed at last. “We’ll take it.”

-

They walked up to the fence at the appointed time and place. Anko leaned against the fence, her arms crossed; TenTen and Ino both stood near Kurenai. 

“These things are all dead depressing,” said Anko, eyeing the war memorial stone.

“They’re necessary, Anko,” Kurenai scolded gently. “They remind us of the cost of our good lives.”

“I know. And I understand why we had to learn about preparing graves at the Academy. Death is a natural part of ninja life and we’re not supposed to weep lots of big tears over it, I get that,” said Anko, rolling her eyes. “Doesn’t mean it’s not depressing.”

“It is sad,” Ino and TenTen admitted, uncomfortable. 

Just then, a male voice echoed from the other side of the fence. “Hello? Are -- are you here? Is that you?” The voice was hesitant, almost shy.

“You’re our client?”

“Yes.”

“Alright. What’s our mission? And why remain anonymous?”

“I... have a confession to make,” said the man.

The girls were confused, curious. “Alright... what is it?”

“... I’m gay,” the man admitted softly. Anko’s eyebrow quirked, Ino frowned, and TenTen seemed nonplussed.

“Okay,” said one of them at last. “And?”

“A certain lord at the Daimyo’s court -- Lord Ayase -- has found out this about me. If he talks of my sexuality at court, it could ruin my good position. I want you to frighten him into keeping silent about my... condition.”

“Frighten him?” Kurenai echoed, as if making sure she heard this right. 

“Yes. Don’t kill him, please! Just -- just frighten him.” The lord sounded nervous.

“Sir,” said Anko at last, “why is this such a huge deal? I mean, who gives a fuck if you’re gay?”

“You don’t understand,” the old man despaired. “When you tell them you’re gay, people -- people look at you differently. They treat you differently. Some are disgusted, some are horrified. A few won’t talk to you anymore. It’s like you become this -- inhuman -- thing. Like you’re reduced to a stereotype or a few stereotypical characteristics.

“I just fall in love with the wrong people. I can’t help who I fall in love with. Who I would do anything for. To me, it’s a beautiful thing. But other people don’t see it that way. 

“So I live like this, in hiding. Hoping I don’t do anything that makes me look gay, hoping no one ever finds about my gayness. Hoping I never have to put up with that drama. I’ve spent years hiding this. I can’t just have all that ruined.

“He’ll reveal me to everyone. I just know he will. You have to help me. Please.” He sounded desperate. None of them thought they had ever heard a lord sound like that before.

“... Okay,” said Kurenai quietly. Her Genin were frowning, swallowing. Reassessing their opinions of certain things. “We’ll help you.”

-

Lord Ayase was currently staying right in Konoha -- in a large manor house with a beautiful surrounding garden complete with fountain. This guy had it made.

Team Ten used stealth to creep onto the property when night fell. They felt out, searching for surrounding chakra signatures. There were four, and only one was male. It was in a bedroom on the third floor.

They walked up the side of the manor using chakra, alighting silently on balcony. They crept into the bedroom, hiding in the shadows of the room, staring at the bed. It had a great canopy, a lone man sleeping ensconced within its blankets.

That would make this much easier.

TenTen walked over and stood on the bedstead, her weapons poised at the ready above the man’s head. She and Anko’s eyes met, and she nodded, once. Then she stabbed downward -- not stabbing the man, but pinning him to the bed by his pajamas. He woke with a start and saw, not TenTen, but an illusion.

It was a great, green, scabby head, complete with gaping maw and rolling mad eyes. The stench coming from it was incredible. After a moment, it formulated into a dragon, with sharp teeth. The dragon roared at the man, who sat upright, shouting. 

Others stirred awake in the mansion.

Ino hurried to connect with the man’s mind. Terrified as he was, what she wanted to do was relatively easy. She rooted around, sifting through his memory bank, shifting for the right piece of knowledge...

TenTen and Anko, their parts finished, went over and kept the door shut by shoving a chair under its handle. The doorknob rattled, people trying to break through into the room beyond.

'Almost there...' Ino thought.

“Ino, come on...” Anko muttered, anxious.

'There it is!' She grabbed the piece of knowledge -- the knowledge of a certain lord’s homosexuality -- and stole it neatly from the man’s mind. Then she came back to herself. 

“Alright,” she said, her head lifting upright again. “Finished.”

They sprinted to the balcony and threw themselves over the side of it, just as the man came to himself, awake again, and the door burst open, revealing his wife, daughter, and housekeeper. 

All four of them stared at the open window in befuddlement, its curtain flowing gently in the evening breeze.

-

“... I’d never thought of it like that before.” TenTen and Ino turned idly to Anko, who had spoken. The three of them were spread out on a rooftop, staring at the moon. “I mean, I’d always known homosexuality existed. Of course I did. I just... never knew it was so painful for some people.”

“I bet a lot of other people don’t know either,” said TenTen. “If we didn’t, I bet a lot of people never think about it in their daily lives. I guess it’s one of those things that’s just... not talked about.”

“So, what do we want to do about that, though?” Ino sighed, staring up at the moon. “I mean, what could we do?”

“... We could gather a bunch of stories from homosexual people together in one place,” said TenTen. “And then show those stories to other people.”

“So... like a blog?” Ino said thoughtfully.

Anko suddenly sat upright, her eyes alit. “Yeah!” she said. “Guys, let’s do it! We could call it Troubled Royalty.”

“So we’re ninja turned entrepreneurs turned... bloggers?” Ino grinned. “I actually like the sound of that. Let’s do it, let’s start a blog on gay rights.”

And so the blog was agreed upon.

-

One night, Ino, TenTen, and Anko all met up late, dressed in black clothes. They had bottles of spray paint carried with them. They snuck through back alleyways, staying away from main streets. 

When they found a good, empty wall, they began throwing spray paint all over it. 

Anko had admitted that one of her bucket list things to do was paint a graffiti mural. So Ino and TenTen had decided to help her make that fantasy come true. 

They sprayed everything -- from cool little symbols, to wider pictures of a little boy becoming a ninja, or of a kunoichi with tape over her mouth. Some of the images were cultural and sentimental, some were political and rebellious. 

At last, a man caught a shadow of them and ran toward them. “Hey, what are you doing -?” he began. They all high tailed it and ran away, TenTen throwing ninja wire and sharp objects behind them to delay the man’s run. Then they sprinted as hard as they could until at last they were on open land -- they’d hit a park.

They all gasped for breath and fell over, grinning like idiots.

“That -- was the stupidest thing -- we have ever done,” Ino gasped. Then she grinned and said, “I used to be so boring before I met you guys.”

Anko and TenTen started laughing. And they lay there, staring up at the stars -- best friends.


	7. Chapter Seven

7\. 

Kurenai called a team meeting one day in early July.

“Okay, girls,” she said, as they were gathered around her in her living room, “I have nominated you all... to take the Chuunin Selection Exam.”

There was a stunned pause. Then it started. Anko stood up, her eyes big. Ino stood up. Then TenTen.

And then they all started screaming their heads off.

“Oh my God! We’re going to make Chuunin! We’re going to make Chuunin!” They began dancing around the room.

“Don’t count your chickens before they hatch,” said Kurenai, but she was laughing. When they’d calmed down a bit, she added, “But you’ll all have a shot.”

“What will the Exam be like?” Ino asked.

“Okay,” said Kurenai, handing out forms. “Here’s how it works. In the Chuunin Exam, Genin from several countries all gather together in one pre-specified place to take the test. This year, Konoha is the host, so you don’t have very far to go. You fill out this application. You meet me at the Academy, third floor, outside room 301, five days from now. You hand me the application. Then you go into room 301, and you begin a series of trials -- challenges, if you will. If you pass all these challenges, you will make Chuunin.”

“What will the trials be?” asked TenTen curiously.

“That, I’m not allowed to say,” said Kurenai smoothly. “More to the point, I don’t know myself. So: will you take the Exam? It can only be taken in teams of three.”

All three girls smiled confidently. “Yes,” they said.

-

During the five-day interval, Anko decided to take some spare money from her latest mission and go to one of her favorite tea shops. It was right outside a local botanical garden, of which Konoha had several which were rather famous, Fire Country being a kindling box of extraordinary greenery. 

Today’s tea was a rather obscure rose tea. One of the great things about this particular tea shop was that it carried some of the oddest brands and flavors. So Anko was enjoying herself. She had her cup of tea, the sun was shining. She turned around from the counter to leave, and without thinking she ran right into someone, spilling tea all over his shirt. 

“Shit!” said Anko immediately, stopping and feeling bad. “I’m sorry!” She grabbed some napkins and began to wipe his shirt off. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”

“It’s fine, it’s fine,” the boy kept saying. Then: “It’s fine.” He grabbed her hand.

She looked up. He must be here for the Chuunin Exams, because he wore a hitai-ate from Suna. He looked about her age, with piercing green eyes and deep red hair that was a mess and also kind of sexy. She had to admit it -- he was hot. He also had a tattoo, and she had a weakness for tattoos. It was over one of his eyes and it said “Love.”

“Geez, and you’re supposed to be a ninja?” The girl with him smirked. She had wavy dirty-blonde hair tied up in a complex bun arrangement, and a weapon strapped to her back. TenTen would have been able to tell what it was, but Anko wasn’t that good. “You don’t even pay attention to your surroundings. Are Konoha ninja so weak?”

Anko bristled. “Watch it,” she said. “We’ll see just how strong Konoha ninja are during the Exam.” She raised an arching, challenging eyebrow.

The girl quickly recovered from her surprise. “You’re in the Exam? What low standards Konoha has.”

“Nowhere near as low as Suna’s,” Anko quipped sharply.

“Temari,” said the boy, bored, “let’s go. We’re wasting time.” 

“Of course, Gaara,” said Temari immediately. They turned to leave.

“I like your tattoo,” said Anko to Gaara’s back. He stopped and looked back to stare at her, his face unreadable. She smirked, indicating toward his eyebrow, brushing her fingers against it. “I like it,” she said. “It suits you.”

Gaara smirked humorlessly, his eyes cold. “It reminds me the only person I’m allowed to care about is myself,” he said. The girl behind him, Temari, seemed tense.

“And do you need reminding?’ Anko gave a slow, sensuous smile. “Don’t you ever... slip up?” It was incredible how aware she was of her body when he looked at her. The red lipstick shine to her lips, making them seem fuller; the way the fishnet armor wore tight over her breasts.

Gaara’s eyes narrowed. “Never.”

“How lucky for you,” said Anko, smirking. “I don’t believe you.” Her tone was mocking. 

“And why would I care what you think?”

“I never said you had to.” She looked behind him at the botanical garden he’d just left. “Were you visiting? I know they’re famous.”

“I study animals and plants,” he said. “I’m fascinated by life.”

“Why?”

“Because I kill things.” She could admire his blunt honesty. 

“And you really never slip up?” she asked teasingly. “You never come to care about something you’re supposed to want to kill?”

“You’re caught on that.”

“I’m interested. It’s a bold claim. I bet you -” She grinned. “I bet you that if you got to know someone you’re supposed to be able to kill, you couldn’t kill them.”

“And are you willing to be a test subject?” he asked dryly.

“Of course.” Her grin widened, her eyes wicked, vicious. “That was the idea.”

Temari now looked positively alarmed, and was shaking her head furiously from behind Gaara.

“And what if, after getting to know you, I just decided to kill you?” His eyes matched her cold and vicious ones, narrowing in a sneer.

She smiled. “Then I lose,” she said easily. “It’s okay.” And she meant it.

He stared at her. “How fascinating,” he observed at last. “You’re not afraid of me.”

“Are people afraid of you where you come from?”

His vicious sneer simply widened. There was something hard in his eyes -- something that she liked. Instinctively. She liked it. 

“Well,” she said, smiling and walking up him, brushing a strand of hair away from his forehead. His eyes widened and she saw just a split second of vulnerable surprise, the cold veneer falling away. “Here,” she breathed, close to his face, “you’re just. Some. Boy.”

There was a moment of heat between them, their lips almost touching. Then she took two steps back, turned right around, and walked away. She heard something suspiciously like a frustrated growl echo after her, and she smirked.

She looked back over her shoulder. “Enjoy your stay in Konoha,” she said. “And I’ll hold you to that promise about getting to know each other sometime. See you in the Chuunin Exams.”

“Yes,” he said at last. “I look forward to fighting you.” 

She felt like they were playing a game. And as she walked away, she realized she liked that game. A lot.

Temari and Gaara were both thinking that between the confrontation with that Sasuke boy and this strange girl, Konoha was full of insane people. Temari realized it in dread. Gaara in growing, bloodthirsty excitement.

-

TenTen took the time provided her by the five-day interval to go to a nearby temple and meditate. She was sitting there in silence, eyes closed, meditating peacefully, when she felt another chakra signature appear next to hers, sitting down beside her as if also to meditate. 

She recognized it. Hyuuga Neji, from their graduating class. She registered this in surprise.

She opened her eyes and looked over at him. He was beautiful, and she resisted the urge to blush. He had pale, sharp features and long, dark hair. Those silver Hyuuga eyes. She had never seen him outside of class before.

He nodded to her, his face cold and stoic. “Hanakiri.”

“Neji-san,” TenTen returned in surprise. “You’re a part of this temple, too.”

He nodded. “I didn’t know you were religious -”

“I didn’t know you were religious -”

They said it at the exact same time. They stopped, and smiled. 

“I focus on meditation as a relaxation technique,” said Neji. “Meditation, and also massage. I find relaxing techniques help me keep perspective.”

TenTen thought of Neji giving her a massage, and this time she did blush. But she was smiling. “I’m fascinated by the supernatural and by belief systems,” she said in return. “I meditate as well as do self hypnosis, and I regularly see a psychic and consult the cards. I like experimenting with different belief systems, exploring them. I’m still waiting to find my perfect fit.”

“So you are... indecisive?” Neji raised an eyebrow.

TenTen shrugged. “I am what I am,” she said. “Trying to create any sort of self identity is just a path to frustration.”

“But everyone has a self identity,” Neji argued. “We start out one way and we continue that way indefinitely. So, technically, your belief system is that you can’t decide on your belief system.”

“Alright, I’ll allow that that’s how I am right now,” said TenTen, interested. “But I reject the idea that that’s how I’ll always be. What if I find something that works for me?”

“No offense, but that’s doubtful. People usually don’t change. They are fated to be the way they are.”

“I reject that wholeheartedly,” said TenTen. But she was so warm and interested about it, smiling, that it was hard for Neji to get offended. And they ended up getting into a long, philosophical debate on the nature of destiny. TenTen felt completely swept away.

In the end, before they parted ways outside the temple, TenTen asked, “Will you be in the Chuunin Exams?” 

Neji paused, and turned back. “I will,” he said.

She smiled, her hands behind her back. “I’ll be there, too,” she said, jumping for joy in her own mind but deciding to play it cool on the outside. “I’ll see you there. Good luck.”

“Luck has nothing to do with it,” said Neji, and TenTen laughed in exasperation.

“It’s a figure of speech!”

Despite himself, Neji smiled.

-

Ino was out jogging one morning shortly before the Chuunin Exams. She was running down the street, and she saw someone jogging ahead of her. Her eyes widened in surprise. It was Uchiha Sasuke, black-haired and black-eyed, seemingly the object of every girl’s dreams.

That was right. Sasuke was a pretty regular exerciser, wasn’t he? She’d seen him around, working out or playing sports, before. He was way more intense physically than she was.

Ino had half a mind to just duck down another street and pretend she hadn’t seem him. Then his head swiveled around and he saw her. Damn.

Ino ran up to jog beside him. “Sasuke,” she said neutrally.

“Ino,” Sasuke returned evenly. They jogged in companionable silence for a while.

“So, all the foreign people wandering the streets is a pretty dead giveaway,” said Ino at last. “Are you trying out for Chuunin?”

“Yeah,” said Sasuke. “And you?”

“I am,” Ino confirmed.

Sasuke thought for a moment. “Good,” he decided. “You were never as silly as some of the other girls. You could do well.”

“I wasn’t as silly, huh?” said Ino dryly.

“Well. You were briefly. But you got over it.”

Ino laughed. “I should probably be offended. It was actually more about Sakura than you. I thought competing against her might get her to open up. Fat lot of good that did me. No offense, because you’re nice looking and all. But, no.”

“I am offended,” said Sasuke flatly, sarcastic. “Extremely.”

“Is this the point where you tell me to fuck off?”

“Yeah, I think we’ve reached that point.”

“Wow. So early.” 

“I know. We’re breaking records here.”

Ino laughed again. Sasuke, usually so reserved, had made her laugh twice. 

They traded banter all the way back to Ino’s place, and when she stopped outside it, she bent over quickly and kissed him on the cheek. His eyes widened in surprise.

Ino smiled mysteriously, playful, and went back into her house. She leaned against her bedroom door and sighed.

-

In celebration, on the last night before the Chuunin Exams, all three girls on Team Ten went out dancing. 

Ino dressed in a cute little black dress. Anko put on lots of makeup, big black heeled boots, and a skimpy chain-mail shirt and skirt combo. TenTen put on a flowery silk dress.

And they all went out to a club and danced together. They laughed and did dorky moves and just shamelessly danced. They were having so much fun that they got asked to dance a few times, but that wasn’t the point.

The point was the fun together between girls.


	8. Chapter Eight

8.

Ino, TenTen, and Anko all met up outside the Academy on the appointed day. It was a Saturday. Other prospective Chuunin mingled around in the front courtyard.

“So,” said Ino to her teammates, “here’s the plan: Kick ass. Take names.”

“Got it!” said Anko and TenTen, grinning.

They walked into the Academy and headed up the stairs toward the third floor. But on the second floor, they encountered something odd. A room with a sign that said 301 was there on the second floor, and a bunch of Genin were mingled around it.

“Genjutsu,” said Team Ten immediately, in tandem. They had to walk that way anyway to get to the third floor, so they approached closer to the group of Genin.

Lee, Shikamaru, and Neji were front and center. Lee was being shoved away from “room 301” by a couple of older boys. These boys were smirking confidently, blocking entry into the room beyond.

“Examiners?” TenTen breathed to Anko. Anko simply nodded once, not taking her eyes off them.

“Hey!” Lee cried out as he fell to the floor. Neji glared. 

“We’re being nice to you guys,” said one of the examiners. “If you can’t even get past us, no way are you going to make it through the Chuunin Exams.” In a way, they were right.

“But why hasn’t Neji seen the illusion?” TenTen asked her teammates softly in confusion. “He has the Hyuuga Byakugan eyes; they see through all illusions.”

Ino’s mind spun. “They have to be faking it,” she replied. “Shika may be a lazy ass, but one thing he definitely isn’t is stupid. They have to be faking it, in order to be underestimated by their opponents.”

“So,” said Anko, smirking, “why don’t we try that?”

“You’re sure your pride can take that?” TenTen asked.

“Can yours?” Anko challenged.

They walked up to the examiners. “Hey!” Anko shouted, as she would have in real life. “Let us through!” One of the examiners back handed her across the face. She forced herself not to guard, letting herself fly away.

“Hitting a girl?” said Lee, in perfect acting. “How low are you?!” 

TenTen had ended up next to Neji, who gave her a curious look. Their eyes met, and TenTen winked. Neji smirked and nodded once.

Just then, Sasuke sauntered forward, Naruto and Chouji behind him. “Ino,” he said, smirking, “you really couldn’t defeat these guys?”

Shikamaru saw it coming before anyone else and sighed. “Troublesome,” he muttered. Team Seven had completely missed the ‘acting’ part.

“It’s okay,” Sasuke continued, lifting his chin. “I will for you.”

“Yeah! Let’s tag team it!” said Naruto, excited.

Okay, now? Now, Ino was annoyed.

Thinking fast, she said, “Uh, Sasuke, dear? I need to talk to you.” Her tone sarcastic, she dragged an annoyed Sasuke away. TenTen, Anko, Shikamaru, Neji, Lee, Chouji, and Naruto followed.

“Yeah, that’s it, just run away!” one of the examiners called mockingly. 

“Shut it, fuck-face, or I’ll murder you myself!” Ino growled back over her shoulder, still walking.

“Can I help?” Anko asked in a low, amused tone.

-

“What was that?” Sasuke snapped.

“What, are you kidding me? What was THAT?!” Ino retorted, hands on her hips, getting right up in his face. “We were pretending to be weak in order to be underestimated by the opposition; we didn’t actually think it would work on you! We don’t need to beat those guys anyway. There’s a genjutsu illusion over the door. The real Room 301 is one floor up from here. We were hoping they’d weed out the unlikelies!”

“I realize that,” said Sasuke, furiously. “But I wanted to beat his ass to prove I could!”

“That’s a stupid reason!” 

“I was trying to help you!”

“Well, I don’t need help!”

Sasuke and Ino glared daggers at each other.

In the tension that followed, Shikamaru turned to Chouji and asked dryly, “So -- you got any snacks? This is just getting good -- Whoa, whoa, hey!” He had to duck underneath a fist from Ino, who hadn’t looked away from Sasuke. “Don’t involve me in this, you crazy girl!”

TenTen giggled, and then she and Neji exchanged another look, and then Neji looked away clearly trying not to laugh.

“Got a problem, Hyuuga?” Sasuke asked darkly.

“Not at all, Uchiha. And you? Still running on fumes?”

“I’ll have you know I activated my Sharingan,” said Sasuke in a cold, furious voice.

“Well, I look forward to seeing it,” said Neji, smirking. “Care for a fight?”

“I’m weaker than Neji; I’ll beat him first,” said Lee eagerly.

“And I am standing over here, completely neutral, eating with Chouji,” Shikamaru reiterated to no one in particular.

“Guys, don’t you think we should wait to fight until the exams? I mean, we’ll have plenty of opportunities to beat the shit out of each other, I’m sure,” said Anko lazily, curious.

“I suppose. Where is Sakura-san?” Lee asked then.

“Uh... I don’t think she made it. Did she?” Anko looked around to the others and they all shook their heads.

“That’s very sad,” said Lee.

“Yeah,” Naruto agreed. “She was hot.”

“Glad you both have such depth of feeling about the whole thing,” said Ino dryly. By this time, all three teams were walking toward the stairs to room 301. They met Kiba, Hinata, and Shino on the stairs.

“Hey, the gang’s all here!” said Kiba in excitement, grinning, and his puppy Akamaru barked.

“Hi, Hinata,” said Team Ten, smiling.

“Hello.” Hinata smiled shyly back. She lifted her chin a little, teasingly, and Anko gave her a thumbs-up. Then Hinata saw Neji behind TenTen and it all went away. She looked away from her cousin, paler and swallowing, her self confidence fading away.

TenTen looked back and forth between Neji and Hinata, frowning at the weird tension.

All four teams made it to room 301, where they each went to find their individual Sensei. Team Ten found Kurenai amid the throng before the doors.

“So you made it past the genjutsu.” She smiled. “Congratulations.” She took their forms. “I know you’ll do well.” The promise was simple -- confident.

TenTen, Ino, and Anko met up with their former classmates and they all walked into room 301 together.

-

It was a traditional classroom and it was filled to the brim with tense, serious-looking older Genin from a whole wide variety of villages. Anko’s eyes landed on two people in particular and they lit up. “This way, guys! I see someone I know!”

She dove into the crowds, and the other rookies followed her, elbowing their way past people to stand with Gaara and Temari’s team from Suna. Anko grinned. “Hey!” she greeted the Suna team, which also carried a boy Anko didn’t recognize. Then she turned to her friends and pointed. “This is Gaara and Temari,” she said casually. “They’re cool.”

Gaara and Temari, who had always been treated deferentially and with a healthy dose of fear in their own village, were unsure how to respond.

“Anko, notice the tension,” said Shikamaru after a moment. “They clearly don’t want us here.” He started to pull an annoyed Anko and the others away -

“What’s wrong? Are you scared of us?” asked Temari challenging. She smirked. Shikamaru scowled in annoyance, eyes narrowing.

“So you’re friends with them,” said Gaara, eyeing Sasuke, a heavy, challenging air between them. “Uchiha,” Gaara greeted calmly.

“Gaara,” Sasuke returned, his tone dark.

“Okay. I know who that team is,” said the third Suna boy at last, in clear bewilderment, pointing to Sasuke, Naruto, and Chouji. “But who the hell are the rest of you?”

“This is Kankurou,” Temari offered.

So each of the rookies went around and introduced themselves. Last of all was Anko, who said, grinning, “And I’m Mitarashi Anko. Gaara here and I have come to an agreement of sorts.”

Kankurou’s eyebrows rose. “Better you than me,” is the first thing he said.

Just then, everyone looked around at some ruckus going on in another part of the room. A Konoha team and an Oto team appeared to have broken out into a fight.

“Only a matter of time, with all this tension,” said Anko casually. “Anybody want to take bets?” TenTen and Ino both made a bet, as did Kiba and Kankurou.

But the fight was broken off before any conclusion could be come to. A smoke bomb suddenly erupted in the center of the room, and when the smoke had cleared, Morino Ibiki the examiner was standing there alongside a series of other Chuunin.

“Quiet down, punks,” said Ibiki stonily. “From here on out, anyone who fights without being specifically asked to will be thrown from the exam.

“The Chuunin Exams start now!”


	9. Chapter Nine

9.

Ibiki had each applicant come up to the front of the room, and take a number. That number corresponded with the seat they were to sit in. TenTen, Ino, and Anko all took their seats, across the classroom from each other, and each of them was wondering why they were taking the test in teams but separated from those teams.

As examiners handed out the written tests and pencils, Morino Ibiki stood at the front of the room and explained.

“I will not be accepting any questions, so listen carefully. Every applicant has ten points at the start of the test. This written exam has ten questions. Each question is worth one point. Every time an applicant gets a problem wrong, one point will be deducted from their total score. Not answering any questions will get the applicant a zero. The applicant’s total points will be tallied up with their teammates’ at the end of the test. Whether the team passes or fails will be determined by their total number of points. Two good teammates can carry one mediocre one, but if any teammate gets a zero, everyone on that team will automatically fail. 

“If one of the examiners placed on the edges of the room sees you cheating during the test, they will deduct two points from your score. If they see you trying to cheat again, two more points will be deducted, and so on and so forth. If your points reach zero, you will be thrown from the test, as will your teammates. So think carefully before cheating. You’re being tested for Chuunin status, you’re here to prove you’re good ninja. Act like a Chuunin. Act like a good ninja.

“There are only nine questions on the paper. The tenth question will be given forty five minutes after the test has begun. The test total will take one hour.

“Begin!”

The examiners sat on all sides of the classroom and Ibiki stood at the front. Each very visible set of eyes on them was heavy. The applicants looked down at the papers, swallowing and beginning their tests.

Anko, TenTen, and Ino all quickly encountered a problem -- they couldn’t answer this test. Its questions were hard on an almost legendary level. More to the point, most of the things it tested on were completely irrelevant to being a ninja. Okay, the ciphers were at least somewhat useful. But the rest of it was a bunch of crap! Who cared what degree of angle the kunai was at while it was being thrown?

So why would they need to know this to be Chuunin? was the next logical question. What could this test really be about?

They went over the rules in their heads, and eventually they caught on one part: There were only two points taken per caught cheating action. Under most circumstances, the examinee would just have been thrown from the test upon first catch. But not here. It was almost like the atmosphere encouraged cheating. Good cheating.

Because that was what a good ninja would do. If they didn’t have the information... they would cheat. Just, you know, without getting caught.

Ino, whose father knew Ibiki through ANBU, thought this sounded like exactly the sort of thing a Black Op would promote, and even to the other two it made sense. So, they just had to cheat, without getting caught. Okay. Simple.

Ino leaned forward, putting her head in a hand, and then she covertly made a hand seal. Her body slumped into unconsciousness, as she entered the mind of the body nearest hers who was writing as if confident of his answers. She took a look through his head, confirmed that he was secretly a Chuunin planted to encourage the applicants’ cheating, took a long look at all his answers, and then reentered her own body with him none the wiser and missing about a minute of memory. 

TenTen used her secret stock of invisible ninja wire, sneaking a hand underneath the desk for her equipment pouch and then whipping the wire out from under the desk, attaching it to a ceiling lamp. She adjusted the reflective glass part of the ceiling lamp to view another’s answers. She looked, and then began writing.

Anko did a hand seal underneath the desk and wove a genjutsu. She disguised herself, putting an illusion of herself writing dutifully in her place. Then, invisible to all eyes, she stood up and took a good look at another’s answers. She sat back down, let the genjutsu go, and began writing.

See? Simple.

None of the members of Team Ten got caught too many times cheating, but plenty of other ninja did. The classroom was neatly halved as the forty-five minutes wore on, with more and more people being ordered suddenly out of the room. Plenty of others who were left were shaking and pale, scared shitless, afraid to look up from their tests.

Ino, TenTen, and Anko all shared looks from around the classroom. Each gave a slight nod. All was well for Team Ten.

“Okay,” said Ibiki at last, and everyone’s heads shot up. “I will now give the tenth question -”

He was interrupted by the door opening and Kankurou reentering the room, after having used the bathroom. Ibiki barked something at Kankurou; Kankurou’s eyes widened and he hurried back to his seat.

“There are some special rules for the tenth question,” Ibiki continued calmly, as though nothing had happened. “First, you are going to choose whether or not you want to take the tenth question.”

“What happens if we don’t?” Temari asked.

“You fail,” said Ibiki simply. “Your points will be reduced to zero, and your teammates will fail along with you. However, if you choose to take the tenth question and fail to answer it correctly, you will be Genin forever.”

“That’s absurd!” said Anko immediately, scathing. “I don’t even believe you!” 

“Believe me, brat!” Ibiki’s eyes widened dangerously. “I am the rule here!”

There was a heavy silence. “You will be barred forever from taking another Chuunin Selection Exam if you fail this question,” repeated Ibiki, calmer. “So if you’re not confident, back out now and take the Exam again later.”

He waited. Slowly, hands started going up. More and more people stood, shame faced, and began leaving alongside their teammates. Ibiki drew it out for a good, long time. He kept asking people if they were sure -- if they were really sure they’d make it. And more and more people kept standing up and leaving.

“What about you, you little shit, are you leaving?” Ibiki asked Anko roughly.

Anko smirked. “You wish, asshole.”

Ibiki turned to the class. “Where are this girl’s teammates? You two!” he said when we raised our hands. “Convince her to leave; she’s not ready!” 

“I refuse to do that, sir!” said Ino and TenTen.

“What’s that?” he barked.

“I refuse to do that, sir!” Ino and TenTen shouted louder, staring straight ahead of themselves, their jaws clenched. 

“... We’re ready, sir,” said TenTen determinedly. “We are.”

No one else left after that.

Then: “Congratulations,” said Ibiki, smiling. “You all pass. 

“You could cheat cleverly, and you were brave enough to take the risk and take the last question. That was what this exam was testing. The first nine questions were meant to test your information gathering skills, with the help of a few Chuunin planted throughout the room to give you answers.” The Chuunin raised their hands. “The tenth question was meant to test your resolve. All missions carry inherent risks -- can you take those risks bravely? As a Chuunin, or a squad leader, you must. It’s essential.

“And you all did. So, congratulations. You’ve broken through the entrance. You pass part one of the Chuunin Selection Exams.”

Anko stood and started cheering, and then Naruto followed her, several other Genin following suit.

“Meet tomorrow morning in front of training ground 44 at eight o’clock,” Ibiki added. “There, you will begin part two.”

-

Anko was lying on her bed that night, reflecting on the Exam so far. She felt a pair of eyes on her and looked around toward the window. Gaara was standing there, his arms crossed. He quirked his eyebrow and she grinned.

She stood up, went down the hall, put her shoes back on, and walked toward the door.

“And where are you going?”

Anko winced and looked around to find the matron standing there, hands on her hips. “Are you meeting that boy out there?” the matron demanded. Anko just sort of stood there in embarrassed silence. The matron sighed and bustled away. “Well, be careful,” she said. “He looks like a dangerous one.”

Anko was left surprised in her wake, for two reasons. First, because she’d expected the matron to tell her she couldn’t go. And second, because that had sounded positively maternal.

Weirded out, Anko walked outside. “I feel like I’m in the Twilight Zone,” she admitted to Gaara. “The matron just said the weirdest thing to me... Anyway.” She grinned. “You found me!”

“I decided to take you up on your challenge,” he said. “I have to ‘get to know you’, do I not?”

“That you do! I’ll try to make it good. You know, keep things interesting for you,” Anko joked.

“Please do,” said Gaara. “With your behavior in the Exam, I admit you seem... mildly interesting.” They started walking along together. Then: “You’re an orphan?”

“Yeah. My parents died when I was really young. I, uh, I don’t really remember it, to be honest with you. I decided I wanted to become a ninja so people couldn’t ignore me anymore,” she admitted.

“You were... ignored?”

“I was... I was medicated and discarded, if that makes any sense. I was given a semblance of a home and then left to myself. I used to wish -- you know, that someone would come and take me away. Of course, it never happened.” She swallowed and looked away, shrugging. “Were you ever ignored?”

“... No,” Gaara admitted. “But I was treated with fear. My father -- our father, my teammates are my siblings -- he is the Kazekage.”

“So?” Anko asked.

“Let me explain. In Suna, we are... stricter, in a sense, than you in Konoha are. More spiritual. Our Kage are our gods. Everyone always kept a safe distance from us. I also had a -- chakra related condition, that made people fear me. They would look at me with these incredibly cold, dehumanizing eyes. And I felt completely -”

“Alone,” Anko finished.

They looked at each other for a moment, a silent sort of understanding passing between them. 

Then Anko stepped forward, tucking a strand of dark hair behind her ear, smiling. “I really like you,” she admitted. “And I’m going to kiss you now. So if you don’t want me to kiss you, you’re going to have to run away really fast, right now.”

Surprise passed across his face, she shut her eyes, and then their lips connected. And hers were warm and soft and wet and full and -- and he liked this. He liked this a lot.

For a moment, the weight on Gaara’s chest lifted.

She gave in to temptation, running her fingers through his hair, and they drank each other in.

-

TenTen was out walking on the night after the first test. She couldn’t sleep, not right now. She was too wired. Hoping she wasn’t too much of a weirdo, she passed by the entrance to the Hyuuga clan compound, and Neji was standing there, watching the moon. His face was thoughtful.

He looked around in surprise, and their eyes met. He smiled, a little. They fell into step beside each other.

“I admired your resolve from earlier,” Neji admitted. “Before Morino Ibiki. You showed impressive strength. I shouldn’t have called you indecisive.”

“I was scared the entire time,” TenTen admitted, smiling. “Is that lame?”

“Nervousness is... natural,” said Neji. “The trick is not to let it get to you. And you didn’t. Congratulations.”

“Thanks,” said TenTen. Their hands brushed against each other’s, and they both looked away awkwardly. Then TenTen blushed, and held out her hand, and after a slight pause he took it.

And with the way she flushed and smiled sweetly up at him, her eyes like a doe’s, wide and soft and dark, for just a moment he felt like he was being tricked and he didn’t care.

-

There was a knock on the door that night, and Ino opened it up to find herself face to face with Uchiha Sasuke. Her eyes widened in surprise.

“Sasuke -”

“I’m not done being angry with you!” he said decisively, infuriated.

“Well -- Sasuke, geez -- not here.” She looked around, hoping her parents weren’t watching, and led him out into the street. “My parents are in there! What -- what are you even talking about?”

“From before! I try to help you and you embarrass me like that in front of everyone? You’re sending mixed signals here, Yamanaka!”

“Why are you telling me this now?!” 

“Because yelling at you was preferable to stewing about it in the dark!”

They looked at each other -- and then all of a sudden, they were making out. They were all over each other, and his hands were all over her body and he bit her lip till it was bloody, and it was messy and angry and he loved every second of it. 

-

On their way to the second test the next morning, as girly and superficial as it sounds, Team Ten had a talk about boys. There was a lot of giggling involved.

“Neji is so cute -!” TenTen dished.

“Gaara’s interesting.” Anko grinned.

“I’m not sure whether Sasuke and I love or hate each other,” Ino admitted. “It’s complicated.”

They arrived at the training area. Training ground 44 turned out to be a vast forest. The Genin all gathered around its fencing, and Neji, Sasuke, and Gaara all naturally gravitated toward Team Ten. Each saw the other boys doing the same thing, and they gave each other uncomfortable, glaring looks, mostly because they were macho boys trying not to be awkward.

Uzuki Yuugao was their second test examiner, standing before them. “Yuugao-san!” said TenTen in pleasant surprise, and Yuugao gave her student a slight smile.

“I expect you’ll do well, TenTen,” Yuugao said.

“Cool,” Anko muttered. “We’re in with the examiner!” Ino laughed.

“Okay, everyone,” Yuugao said louder, clapping her hands. Everyone quieted down and turned to look at her. “Training area 44 is also known as the Forest of Death. For those of you who are a little slow on the uptake, that means people have died in this forest. So I am going to pass around consent forms, because from here on out people will die. All these forms say is that you agree Konoha will not be held responsible in the event of your death, as you were forewarned.”

“I’m liking this already,” Anko grinned, and Gaara smirked. TenTen and Ino both privately thought that they were happy Anko was with them. As determined as they were, Anko’s vicious glee made them feel better.

“Now, let me explain. Inside this forest, you will go through an extreme survival match. The forest is a circular area surrounded by 44 locked gate entrances -- that’s what this fencing is for. There is a stream that runs through the forest -- this training area is its own independent ecosystem, which is why you will have to scrounge up your own food once inside the forest -- and in the exact center of the forest is a tower. The tower is approximately six miles away from any given gate. With me so far?

“You will work within training area 44 as a team. Your Genin team will compete against other Genin teams for scrolls. There are two kinds of scrolls, a white one with a seal that says ‘Heaven’ and a black one with a seal that says ‘Earth.’ Twenty six teams are gathered here with us today. Half of those teams will get a Heaven scroll and half of those teams will get an Earth scroll. Each Genin team’s goal once inside the forest is to get one copy of each kind of scroll. So you have to fight another team -- and possibly kill them, anything goes inside this forest -- to get the opposite kind of scroll, and then you have to fend off attacks from other teams and keep your original scroll. 

“You will each begin at a different locked gate entrance and you will all be let into the training ground at once when a timer starts. Making it to the tower with both kinds of scrolls will mean you have passed the second test. All of your teammates must be alive in order for you to receive a passing score. You must reach the tower within the time limit of five days -- or exactly 120 hours from when you are released into the forest -- in order to receive a passing score.

“If you’re keeping count, that means at least thirteen teams will fail this part of the Exam.

“This test was created to be harsh for a reason. It’s meant to test your survival skills. It’s not enough to be clever and brave. You must also be tough, able to navigate a difficult situation and succeed in it. That’s what being a Chuunin is all about. On that note, no one is allowed to look inside the scrolls until they reach the tower. This test is meant to simulate a mission, and during a mission, what you’ve been sent to retrieve is none of your business.

“Sign your consent forms and enter the tent to the left of me, as a team. Each team must enter alone. Inside the tent, you will exchange three consent forms for one scroll. Then you will be assigned a gate entrance. You will wait at that gate entrance to be released into the forest. Everyone will be let inside at once.”

-

“We’re all taking this test,” Ino confirmed, “right?” Team Ten was sitting in the grass in a circle, each member holding a consent form.

“Of course,” said TenTen. 

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” added Anko.

“Alright,” said Ino, “so let’s sign.” They each signed their name, and then they went to stand in line to receive a scroll. They walked into the tent, and received a Heaven scroll in return.

TenTen sealed it away, locking it inside one of her storage scrolls, a run-of-the-mill one so no one would be able to tell from the outside which storage scroll was the important one. Then they all went to their gate entrance.

“We need a strategy,” said Ino. “What do we do once we get into the forest?”

Anko thought fast. “There was chakra in that Heaven scroll,” she said at last.

TenTen brightened. “So you’re saying...”

“Is that Heaven scrolls have one chakra signature, and Earth scrolls have another,” said Anko. “So we sense out the nearest set of chakra signatures with an Earth scroll, and then set up a trap for them.”

“On the note of traps,” said Ino, “I don’t think any of us should leave the group. We do everything together -- eat, pee, everything. Otherwise, someone could craft an illusion and come along pretending to be us.”

“Agreed,” said TenTen and Anko.

The gate was opened and they walked through, into the dark forest beyond.


	10. Chapter Ten

10.

Once inside the forest, Team Ten quickly found a quiet place, hiding up in the leafy depths of a tall tree. Underneath this cover, they each sat cross-legged on a branch and closed their eyes. They reached their senses out, searching, searching, brushing over different chakra signatures...

“I found an Earth scroll!” said TenTen, her eyes flying open in triumph. “Follow me!”

And they went off the trail, following TenTen through the depths of the forest, jumping from tree branch to tree branch.

-

The Iwa team, all boys, jumped onto the next tree branch -- and right into a catching nest of invisible ninja wire. They struggled, bound, and one managed to throw his kunai straight through the strings, sending them crashing toward the forest floor... and also right toward the shuriken attack that had been triggered by the cut wire.

The trap had been TenTen’s creation.

The Iwa team was pretty good. They dodged, deflected with the flat side of their kunai, and then jumped away right into... Team Ten, made invisible by Anko’s genjutsu. 

The invisible TenTen threw a kunai straight through all three bodies, and they collapsed into piles of dirt. They had been Earth bunshin, and Team Ten had just revealed their hand. 

A landslide Earth jutsu was suddenly raining down on them, sent by the real Iwa team. Ino put up an Earth wall to stop the landslide, even as Team Ten channeled chakra into their legs and leaped farther backward into the trees. Then Ino made another set of hand seals and blew the Iwa nin away in a Wind jutsu. Anko put a binding genjutsu over the disoriented Iwa nin, and they fell over, angry and helpless, onto the ground. 

Before they could break out of the genjutsu, TenTen ran over, jumped down beside them, and began tying them up with ninja wire. She had to be careful -- if the bonds were too inexact, the Iwa nin could break out of them.

Team Ten rifled through the Iwa nins’ packs for the Earth scroll.

-

Now was the time to head for the Tower. Both scrolls were among the items in TenTen’s storage scrolls, and all of them were basically unharmed. So far, so good.

They hadn’t been running through the forest for very long when another team swung down out of the trees for a direct attack. TenTen jumped forward, and nullified the entire team in a whirl of taijutsu and silver. This team hadn’t been particularly strong.

They were running again through the forest when all of a sudden, they felt all their muscles seize up. A paralysis jutsu trap. They fell painfully toward the earth below.

The team came out, standing above them and smirking. Only Ino knew what to do -- her father had taught her how to break out of a paralysis jutsu years ago. She flooded chakra through her body, and then with her hands still behind her back she made a hand seal, entering the leader’s mind. He randomly turned around and started beating the shit out of his surprised teammates.

“Anko, TenTen!” Ino in his body shouted. “Flood chakra through your body! Free yourselves!” 

Ino crashed the two ninjas’ heads together, and then retreated back into her own body. Now only the leader was left. Anko enacted a “what you do to me is what you feel” genjutsu and the leader fell over, paralyzed.

They stood above him, smirking and brushing themselves off. “I love irony,” said Anko. Then TenTen stabbed right through the paralyzed ninja before he could free himself.

-

They had continued their run toward the tower, when all of a sudden they saw three bodies littering the forest floor up ahead. Ino’s eyes widened and she stopped. “Sasuke!” The bodies belonged to Sasuke, Naruto, and Chouji.

“Hide,” TenTen hissed, sensing someone coming, and they all jumped into the nearest bush and crouched there, watching. The team currently approaching Team Seven was from Oto.

“Is he dead?” the Oto girl asked.

One of the boys nudged Sasuke with his toe. Ino recognized them -- they were the team who had gotten into the fight before the first exam. “Nah,” said the boy. “Just unconscious. What a letdown.”

“We could kill him,” the other boy suggested, grinning.

Ino gritted her teeth and moved to help Sasuke, but Anko put a hand on her arm and shook her head. Then she made a hand seal and crafted a genjutsu. All of a sudden, the Oto nin heard a shout from the forest nearby. They whirled their heads around.

“People are fighting nearby,” said the first boy, getting jumpy. “Come on. Let’s just get out of here.”

The Oto nin leaped away.

Team Ten ran out and knelt over Team Seven. TenTen used her first aid knowledge to tend to Team Seven’s wounds, and made them swallow chakra replenishing pills. 

“What’s with this seal?” Ino asked worriedly, brushing her fingers over Sasuke’s face. An angry red seal emanating from a place on his neck had taken over half his body. He was perspiring, his unconscious face twisting in pain. The seal was obviously hurting him. 

“I could put a containment seal over it,” said TenTen. “I know how to do those from my storage scrolls.” She put the containment seal over the neck seal, and immediately the red sealing shrank away, leaving only three contained black tomoe on Sasuke’s neck in their wake. 

Slowly, Sasuke’s eyes fluttered open. “... Ino?” is the first thing he said hoarsely in surprise.

She and her team smiled. “We’re here to save the day,” Ino joked weakly. “What was that seal on your neck?”

“Some asshole from Grass gave it to me during our fight,” said Sasuke, sitting upright. “It... it hurt my body and it gave me nightmares.”

“It gave you nightmares?” Ino asked worriedly.

“Yeah. Memories... of my parents dying,” he admitted.

Ino frowned. “Look into my eyes,” she said. He did, and she entered his mind. There it was. The seal was pumping dark emotions at a ridiculous pace into Sasuke’s mind, warping and changing it. 

Ino put up a wall, and cut off the seal’s access to Sasuke’s brain.

“It was trying to turn you into a dark, violent person,” she said, retreating and coming back to herself. “I cut off its access to your brain. Just... try not to think about it too much, okay? Not in the metaphorical, emotional sense. Like, in the literal sense.”

“I get it,” said Sasuke, smiling in amusement. “Thanks. It’s kind of embarrassing,” he admitted. “Someone else having to save me.”

“We don’t blame you,” said TenTen.

“Yeah, we’re just that awesome,” Anko added.

“As thanks, I won’t ask you about your scrolls,” said Sasuke, standing with obvious effort. “Go. I can handle my teammates.”

Ino stood, but she was still torn, worried.

“Go!” said Sasuke meaningfully, his eyes widening. He was too proud to allow otherwise. So they retreated further into the forest.

-

They were getting closer to the tower now. They passed by one clearing with particularly heavy chakra, and were about to give it a wide berth, when Anko realized who it was and perked up. “Hey, it’s Gaara! Guys, I want to see Gaara!” She ran off toward the clearing. 

“Anko, can you feel the killing intent coming from that clearing?” TenTen asked incredulously, even as they followed her in that direction. “What, you want to watch him murder somebody?!”

“Uh, yeah,” said Anko, as if this should be obvious. “Duh.”

They approached close to the clearing and hid high up in a tree, watching through the leaves. Gaara and his team had approached an older Genin team from Ame.

“Hey, Gaara, shouldn’t we have followed them and made sure they had the right scroll first?” Kankurou was saying uneasily. “If they have the same scroll, there’s no need to fight them.”

“It doesn’t matter,” said Gaara, his eyes hard and bitter, jaded. “Anyone who meets my eye in this forest is dead.” His tone was cold and cruel. 

“See?” Anko was whispering. “Now, isn’t that a turn on?”

“Only to you, Anko,” Ino whispered back, rolling her eyes. “Only to you.”

The lead Ame Genin started with an attack called Senbon Rainstorm that looked good on the surface -- it stormed hundreds of chakra-controlled senbon down on the opponent -- though it probably wouldn’t have stood up to Ino’s wind blowing attack. Gaara was completely unfazed. He carried sand around in the gourd strapped to his back, and it blocked all the attacks for him.

Then Gaara promised to make it rain blood, everything about him deadly and vicious. The sand went from defensive to offensive. It wrapped around the leader and crushed him into a bloody pulp, in a move called sand coffin. Gaara went on a rather frightening poetic bent about blood, death, and sand, his tone calm, as he killed the other two -- despite the fact that those other two had given up the scroll and were trying to escape. Gaara seemed to be enjoying himself.

Even Anko was frowning by the end. Killing people who didn’t want to fight anymore wasn’t exactly kosher in her book.

Kankurou walked up in the aftermath, smiling falsely. “Luckily, they had a Heaven scroll,” he said cheerfully, picking it up. “We’re done.” He was obviously just trying to pacify his brother.

Anko leaped down into the clearing, and TenTen and Ino followed her cautiously. It was a mark of the friendship that had grown between the three of them that they followed her into the clearing at all.

Anko walked up to one of the littered remains of the corpse, and nudged it with her toe. “That end part was a little much, wasn’t it?” she said, faux casual, looking sideways at Gaara.

She was rewarded by sand slamming against her, pinning her against the tree.

“You,” Gaara decided, his eyes narrowed, “are getting a little too comfortable with me. I told you: Anyone who meets my eye in this forest dies.” He moved to crush her with his sand, and Anko prepared herself for the end. She’d started a charity and a blog that would continue on without her, she would die perfectly honorably in a fight, and she would leave friends behind her. Really, that wasn’t bad, as far as legacies went. Anko wasn’t afraid to die.

But the sand paused. 

Gaara just stood there, staring at her. His sand frozen hovering in the air, his hand half out. His siblings looked confused.

Gaara was remembering their kiss. The fullness of her mouth, the way the weight in his chest had lifted, the way she’d understood what it felt like to be alone.

That pause afforded Anko the moment she needed. She made two hand seals. In one moment, she’d placed an illusion of herself in Gaara’s grasp, and in another she’d done a replacement spell. A log was held in Gaara’s grip, but it looked like Anko. To all appearances, it was Anko.

Anko reappeared on the edge of the clearing, deep within the leaves, and she placed an illusion next over her teammates, so it looked like they were still standing there. They felt her chakra and sprinted silently out of the clearing. Team Ten jumped away through the trees, and only when they were a good distance away did the illusion faze out.

Abruptly, the Sand siblings were standing in an empty clearing and Gaara’s sand was holding a log.

Gaara’s eyes narrowed.

“What the hell was that?” Kankurou asked before he could stop himself. “Why did you pause?”

“That’s that girl who flirted with you outside the botanical garden, isn’t it?” Temari asked cannily.

“What?” Kankurou said incredulously. “You’re telling me Gaara has a girlfriend?” He sounded terrified at the very thought.

“Shut up, Kankurou,” said Gaara absently, still staring at the place where Anko had been. “Or I’ll kill you.”

“Gaara,” said Temari nervously. “Don’t forget what we really came here for.”

“... Yeah,” said Gaara, memories of Anko’s smile in his head. “I know.”

-

They encountered Neji next. They were so busy running from Gaara, they ran straight into a clearing where he was attacking someone over their scroll. Neji used the Hyuuga Gentle Fist taijutsu style. In a matter of quick seconds and a few light taps on the abdomen, Neji’s opponent was curled up on the ground spitting up blood.

Neji calmly took the scroll from the boy’s kunai pouch and left him there. He turned around, and paused in surprise.

“Please don’t try to kill us,” said Ino flatly. “We’ve been getting a lot of that lately.”

“I already have what I need,” said Neji warily, suspicious.

“So do we,” said TenTen quickly.

“So... you’re not going to kill us?” Ino confirmed. “And you’re not dying?”

“Correct,” said Neji, raising an eyebrow.

The girls relaxed wearily. “Well,” said TenTen. “That’s a relief. First time that’s happened since we got in here.”

Neji looked amused despite himself. “I’m so glad I could provide you with this experience,” he said, bemused. “How about I go one way and you go the other?”

“Sounds good!” said Anko enthusiastically, and they turned around and went in opposite directions out of the clearing.

“See?” muttered TenTen. “MY boyfriend’s sane.”

“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, TenTen,” said Ino. “Sanity is relative.”

-

The closer they got to the tower, the more traps they encountered. One particularly ugly one they almost walked right into, but Anko saved them. She stopped, threw out her hands, and said, “Illusion.”

They paused and a pit of snakes was revealed to them in place of the trail they’d been about to step onto.

TenTen sensed out and threw a kunai. There was a choking sound as she caught someone in the underbrush in the throat. There was a scrambling and the other two teammates ran away quickly.

“Thanks, Anko,” said Ino. 

“Don’t worry about it. I put you guys in the path of Gaara, I had to do something to make up for it,” Anko joked.

“You’re right,” said TenTen and Ino. “You selfish bitch.”

-

At last, Team Ten made it to the tower. They walked through the doors on the evening of the first day, and encountered a long room with a riddle written in big letters on the wall across the room from them. 

'If you do not possess Heaven, prepare and gain knowledge. If you do not possess Earth, run through the fields and gain strength. With both Heaven and Earth, danger turns into safety. This is the secret of __. It will lead you on your way.'

“So... we open both scrolls?” Ino guessed. “Heaven and Earth?”

“It looks that way,” said TenTen. “Heaven is a metaphor for the mind and Earth for the body. We need both in ninja life, and we need both to learn what to do next.”

So they took the scrolls out of TenTen's storage scroll and opened both of them, side by side each other, and a summoning rune was created. In a burst of smoke, Iruka appeared.

“On the first day,” he said, impressed. “I should have guessed. Only the best from Team Ten.” They smiled wearily.

“So,” said Iruka, all business, “I’m here to congratulate you on succeeding in the second test. You will have to wait out the next four days in the tower until the rest of the teams arrive; what will happen next will be announced after that.”

“What would you have done if we’d opened the scrolls before arriving at the Tower?” Anko asked curiously.

Iruka shuddered. “I don’t want to think about that. I don’t even know if I could have beaten you three.”


	11. Chapter Eleven

Gaara sought Anko out after finding out that she had also arrived at the tower. She was notified of this as she was heading back down the hall to her bedroom after having dinner in the mess. She whirled around, gasping, and he was standing right there.

Gaara stared at her, eyes narrowed, for a moment. “I want to kill you,” he admitted. “And I don’t want to kill you. I don’t understand.”

Then he brought their lips crashing together and he kissed her again, long and hard. Anko kissed back, instinctively, grabbing his hair and moving closer in against him, feeling his hard form underneath her shirt. He growled and she moaned, and it was just. Perfect.

They separated, breathing hard.

Then, remembering, Anko glared, looking him close in the eye. “I’m not sure I should be kissing someone who kills people who don’t want to fight,” she said suspiciously.

“That’s what you were upset about? They deserved it,” Gaara scoffed.

“Oh, great!” Anko stood back, throwing her hands up in the air. “You just ruined it!”

“Ruined what?” he asked, glaring.

“This thing we had going! You just ruined it with all of that spoiled little shit bullshit! Only a spoiled little shit would say someone ‘deserved death’.” Anko folded her arms decisively, looking away.

Gaara observed her for a moment, his head tilted. “My father regularly hires people to kill me,” he said. “Do they deserve death?”

“Why the hell would your own father try to kill you?” Anko asked, caught off guard. “That’s horrible!”

“Upon my birth, I ended my mother’s life,” said Gaara. “A demon was sealed within me. When I sleep, it takes over my mind and attacks, killing people. The demon made me unstable and my father decided I needed to be rid of.”

“But -- if your father’s the Kazekage --”

“He’s the one who ordered the demon sealing, yes.” Gaara smirked humorlessly. “Growing up, everyone stayed away from me. They were terrified of me. I had someone I thought cared about me once. My uncle, my caretaker. He was the first one to try to kill me.”

Anko had no idea what to say to something so terrible. After a moment, thinking about it, she said, “That’s stupid.” At his look, she clarified, “Fearing you because of what you hold. It’s stupid. Whether you attack and kill people or not is all up to you as long as you stay awake, isn’t it? You seem pretty stable to me,” she challenged.

He looked at her. “... I am stable around you,” he admitted.

Anko leaned forward and kissed him again. He stared at her, vulnerable, and she smiled and hugged him. He paused for a moment, and then hugged her back very tightly, desperately.

“I love you,” she said. “But no more killing people who don’t want to fight. Okay?”

“Love...” Gaara seemed to be pondering the word. “The last person who spoke to me of love betrayed me.”

Anko hid her face from him, trying to cover how terribly sad she thought that was.

-

TenTen went to seek out Neji, smiling. “Hi!” she said, hands behind her back, feeling lighter than air. “There wasn’t really much opportunity for talking in the Forest of Death.”

Neji looked at her seriously. “TenTen, I’ve been thinking,” he admitted. “This can’t continue.”

TenTen felt like she’d just been hit by something. “... What?” is all she could say.

“I am expected to marry someone from within my own clan,” said Neji, “and --”

“Wait a minute. That’s your big excuse?! Family expectations?!”

Neji looked frustrated. “TenTen... There are two sections of the Hyuuga family. There is the main family, such as Hinata-sama. And there is the branch family, such as myself. The branch family’s sole duty is to protect the branch family. In pursuit of this duty, each member of the branch family is branded with a seal. If they disobey the main family, the seal is activated. It destroys the branch member’s brain cells, invades their mind and causes them great pain.”

“That’s why you resent Hinata,” said TenTen wonderingly.

“I am stronger than her. And yet she is of the main family and I am not.” Neji frowned. “But, that’s not the point. The point is, what if this continues? That could happen to you. Or your children. I cannot allow that to happen. I mean, what would your parents say?”

“My parents abandoned me when I was little. I live with my grandmother,” she said flatly. Then she sighed and thought about it. “But, well.. isn’t it a little soon to be worrying about that?” said TenTen, confused. “We’ll get there when we get there. Neji, you can’t deny yourself happiness because of some stupid seal. Your seal doesn’t have to define you. Besides, I know containment seals. I mean, if worse comes to worst...” She shrugged. “I think we should try this. I think we should give it a shot. 

“It probably won’t work out, and then we’ll have some wonderful memories.”

-

Sasuke and Ino ended up sitting on a window ledge together, just talking. 

“... I can’t get the memories out of my head,” Sasuke admitted, gazing up at the ceiling. “Of my parents being murdered.”

Ino lifted her head. “Your parents were murdered?”

He nodded. “By my brother,” he admitted dully, sounding depressed. “He’s a missing nin. I plan to avenge them.”

“So... like, become a hunter nin?”

“... That’s actually a good idea,” he admitted, thinking about it.

“My Dad’s a part of ANBU. He could put in a good word for you, once you make Jounin.”

“You have such faith in me,” said Sasuke, smirking and looking over at her.

“Hey, I am most definitely making Jounin,” said Ino. “And you’re coming along with me.”

Sasuke laughed, a rarity.

-

Pretty soon, the four day interim was over and it was time to meet up in the main, long room again. Twenty one applicants had made it this far -- Teams Seven, Eight, Nine, and Ten, one older Konoha team, along with a team from Suna and a team from Oto. They all lined up before the Hokage, the Konoha village leader, who was surrounded by Chuunin and all the Jounin Sensei, and was standing at the front of the room. An upper floor balcony surrounded them.

“The third test will now begin,” the Hokage said, louder than usual, in deep, raspy tones. His hands were folded neatly behind him. “But before I explain the third test, there is something that I would like to make very clear to all of you. There is a reason why we do a joint exam with our fellow Hidden Villages. There are many pretty words said about it: ‘to heighten good relations’, ‘to heighten the level of ninja on an international scale’. These words disguise the truth. The Chuunin Exam, ever since its inception, has taken the place of war.

“Throughout history, the elemental countries have always been at war with one another. No alliance has lasted through all of time. To avoid wasting unnecessary military power, in recent times the elemental countries have taken to deciding on a place, time, and specifications for our wars. To have them within safe boundaries, so to speak. A front was put up for this, entitled ‘the Chuunin Selection Exam’. The Chuunin Selection Exam’s true purpose is, and always has been, competition. International competition.”

“What about selecting Chuunin?” asked TenTen.

“That also happens,” said the Hokage, nodding. “However, you are mainly fighting in this exam for your country’s, and your village’s, honor. And I thought it was important to remind you of that in preparation for the third, and final, test.

“The third test will be something like a spectator sport. The fighting will be done in an arena filled with viewers. Feudal lords and celebrities from all over the world will be invited as my personal guests. Kage who have participating ninja will also attend. 

“The third test will involve individual one-on-one battles. All the people assembled will see them. They will see every move you make, how you fight, everything you do. If there is a significant difference in power between one village and another, the successful village will be flooded with jobs and its country’s military prestige will heighten in the international eye. If a village is seen as weak, everything I just mentioned will decrease. You are to be shown off, paraded as an example of what your village has to offer.”

“A ninja’s true power is only born in life or death battles,” finished the Hokage.

“I don’t care about any of this,” said Gaara. “Tell us the details of this life or death battle.” He seemed impatient, frustrated.

Gekkou Hayate stepped forward. “As the judge for the third test, I will explain,” he said. “Before the third test, there is something we need to do -” And then he broke into a hacking cough that was physically painful to listen to. Hayate continued at last, “... We will have preliminary one on one matches in this very room. Half of those in this room will continue on to the final round of the third test, half of those will lose their battle and will not be able to be selected as Chuunin. Injury or death are also possible.

“There are too many examinees left,” Hayate explained, shrugging, because some people including Ino had made noises of protest. “There can only be a certain number of matches in the final round, or the spectators will get bored. It’s standard regulation.

“We are also pressed on time, so anyone who wants to quit after hearing the explanation, just raise their hand. You will no longer be tested in teams...” Here, Hayate had another spurt of horrific coughing. “... The matches will begin immediately.”

“But we just finished the second test!” someone complained incredulously.

“I apologize. There is no other way,” said Hayate.

One person left -- an older Konoha Genin named Yakushi Kabuto. Everyone else, including all the members of Team Ten, decided to stay. They met Kurenai’s eye from behind the Hokage and Kurenai nodded, congratulating them silently on their bravery.

“Alright. They will be one on one matches, as has already been said,” said Hayate. “Now that we have exactly twenty people, we will have exactly ten matches. The winning ten will advance to the third test. There are no rules in these matches from here on out. You both go on until one person either is knocked unconscious, dies, or surrenders -- whichever comes first. However, what I say goes,” Hayate coughed, rather ruining the effect of his words, “so if I judge a match is over, it stops immediately.” 

A panel in the wall behind the Hokage slid aside, revealing a scoreboard. It randomly chose two names from the long list each time, and those two names had to fight each other. The scoreboard was started up...

Inuzuka Kiba vs Gaara

Kiba’s eyes widened and his face paled. “I surrender,” he said immediately. Everyone turned to stare at him in surprise, because Kiba was usually always the tough guy. “I saw you in the forest of death,” said Kiba in a low, shaking voice, staring at Gaara. “No way in hell am I fighting you. You want a fight, go talk to Anko; she’s crazy enough to like you.”

A tendril of sand suddenly shot from Gaara’s gourd and toward Kiba, who flinched -- And then the sand paused. Gaara looked at Anko; het met her eye. 'I love you. But no more killing people who don’t want to fight. Okay?'

Gaara looked away bitterly, the sand retracting, and he did nothing. Only then did Anko notice the tension in the air, and register the surprise on Temari and Kankurou’s faces as they looked between the two.

“Winner by default,” said Hayate cautiously, “is Gaara.”

The scoreboard went through two more names:

Uzumaki Naruto vs Temari

“YES!” Naruto shouted. “My turn!” And as everyone else moved to stand with their Jounin sensei on the balcony, Temari and Naruto faced off on the floor. 

Kurenai moved to reunite with her Genin, who beamed and greeted her. “Kurenai-sensei! Are you excited to see the matches?”

“I’d like to know how we measure up in comparison to the other Genin and Jounin sensei,” Kurenai admitted, curious. “Naruto, for example, is Kakashi’s student, while Temari is the Kazekage’s daughter. Let’s see how they match up.”

“Geez, I get the loudmouth,” Temari smirked. “You know, they say the weakest dogs bark the loudest.”

Naruto grit his teeth, glaring. “I’ll show you... Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!” Naruto started out strong with a bunch of shadow clones, physical copies of himself. He charged Temari with all of their combined might -- and Temari took out the weapon at her back. It was a gigantic fan. She swept the fan in a wind ninjutsu, and all the Narutos were thrown away. The real Naruto hit his head against the wall behind him and blacked out.

“... Winner,” said Hayate, after a pause in which Naruto didn’t get up, “Temari.”

Temari yawned. “Well,” she said smugly, “that was boring.”

Mitarashi Anko vs Abumi Zaku

“Alright! Let’s do this!” Anko jumped down to the floor, smirking and stretching, crossing her hands over her head.

“Anko, if you lose, I’ll kill you!” Ino was calling.

“Yeah! Death will be in your future!” added TenTen.

Everyone sweat dropped. “Kurenai,” said Kakashi dryly, “your Genins’ idea of support is terrifying.” Kurenai smirked.

Zaku jumped down and boasted, “I’ll make this quick and easy.” He blasted two air cannons out of his hands toward Anko -- who fazed out, revealing herself to be an illusion. Zaku had just enough time to go, “What the fu -?” before his throat was suddenly slit by some invisible force. He keeled over, dead.

Anko became visible, holding the kunai knife from behind him, as everyone gasped. She looked down expressionlessly at her dead opponent. “It was when I was stretching my hands above my head,” she said. “I was making a hand seal. That’s when I did the invisibility technique.”

“Asuma-sensei, what’s going on? How did she do that?” Kiba asked.

“Kurenai is an illusions specialist,” said Asuma, explaining for the room. “And apparently, she passed it on to one of her Genin. Anko made herself invisible and placed an illusion of herself before Zaku as a decoy. That way, she could sneak silently around behind her opponent and kill him.”

“Winner,” said Hayate, “Mitarashi Anko. Medics, please take Zaku’s body from the floor.”

Anko walked back toward the balcony, still unusually solemn. Then she stopped and smirked up at the Sand siblings. She gave a jaunty little wave. Gaara raised an eyebrow, fondly exasperated, but there was something new in his eyes: respect.

-

Nara Shikamaru vs Uchiha Sasuke

“Troublesome,” Shikamaru grumbled. “Why do I have to fight the best in our graduating class?” He and Sasuke made their way down to the floor to stand before each other. Sasuke looked up once at Ino, who smiled seductively. 

'Yes,' she thought. 'I’m watching. Go ahead and impress me.'

Sasuke activated his Sharingan, a special eye technique that allowed him to read and copy others’ movements. Then he made the hand seals and breathed a burst of fire, shooting it straight at Shikamaru. Shikamaru swore and jumped away in a dodge, then made his own hand seal.

Shikamaru’s shadow stretched on and on, powered by the burst of light, but Sasuke saw the chakra-infused shadow coming with his Sharingan and kept jumping backward until Shikamaru’s shadow reached its limit. The shadow trembled, and then retracted.

“So I can’t move from this spot and I can’t force you to move,” said Sasuke thoughtfully. Then he shot two kunai at Shikamaru, who blocked them with the flat part of his blade.

“I figured you were doing a ninja wire trick,” Shikamaru explained, “to try to entrap me. That’s why I couldn’t let the knives move past me.” Sasuke scowled and retracted the kunai on their ninja wire.

Then, suddenly, Shikamaru’s shadow flashed out again. It bounced off of Sasuke’s kunai’s shadow and jumped out at lightning speeds to attach to Sasuke’s own. This time, the jutsu succeeded. Shikamaru’s shadow connected with Sasuke’s.

“But thanks,” Shikamaru finished, smirking grimly, “for allowing my shadow a bouncing off point.”

Sasuke scowled, but he couldn’t move, trapped within the shadow’s spell.

“Winner,” said Hayate, “Nara Shikamaru.”

Up on the balcony, hidden under an illusory disguise, Orochimaru frowned. That had been a rather... disappointing performance. Furthermore, Sasuke’s seal showed no signs of reacting to his body. Perhaps Sasuke wasn’t the one...

-

Kinuta Dosu vs Hanakiri TenTen

TenTen jumped down onto the floor, smirking and ready. Ino and Anko were shouting violent and well-meaning encouragements behind her. Dosu moved slowly down to meet her, eyeing her assessingly.

“Your teammates’ cheering is unsightly,” he said at last.

“So is your face!” Anko yelled, and Ino laughed.

TenTen went for the attack. She leaped into the air and rained a barrage of weapons down on Dosu from one of her storage scrolls. But Dosu raised a giant metal arm, and he tossed them all away in a wave of some sort, the wave also hitting TenTen and throwing her away. In a taijutsu move, she landed on her feet, but then the effects of the wave hit her. She fell to her knees, throwing up, her ears ringing and bleeding.

“Sound waves,” said Dosu, smirking. “Those are my attack. You lose.”

“Winner -” Hayate began, and then he paused, breaking off. Because there was a weird hissing sound in the air...

And then all the explosive tags attached to the weapons exploded.

TenTen had already leaped into the air to avoid the attack, but Dosu hadn’t. He was swallowed by the explosion of flame which rocked the very foundations of the tower. When the smoke cleared, there was only a scorch mark where once there had been Kinuta Dosu.

Everybody looked up. When TenTen had jumped up, she’d jumped back onto the balcony, her face determined. “Sorry, Dosu,” she said. “YOU lose.”

“Winner,” said Hayate after a moment, “Hanakiri TenTen.” TenTen immediately took a knee. Medics had to come and take her away.

-

Hyuuga Neji vs Akadou Yoroi

Neji and Yoroi engaged in a furious taijutsu fight. At last, Yoroi stopped in surprise.

“Yes,” said Neji, his X ray Byakugan eyes in full effect, “I did see you pulling chakra away from me every time you touched me. I decided your chakra coils needed to be dealt with. So I closed off all your chakra holes with my Jyuuken taijutsu. Now you can no longer take any more chakra away from me.”

Then Neji suddenly did a devastating taijutsu attack called 64 strikes on Yoroi’s abdomen, a rapid fire attack that caused severe internal organ damage in a rapid 64 strikes. Yoroi fell over, throwing up blood.

“Winner,” said Hayate hurriedly, “Hyuuga Neji. Medics, please come take him away!”

Neji stopped, standing back, breathing hard and shaking. “I... also require... medical treatment,” he admitted. “I believe I may be suffering chakra exhaust -” And then he collapsed.

Medics took away both Neji and Yoroi. As Neji was rolled into the medic ward beside TenTen, she looked over and smiled at him. They held hands, side by side in their shared hospital beds.

-

Akimichi Chouji vs Yamanaka Ino

Ino jumped down to the floor. Chouji looked frightened. “Don’t worry, Chouji,” said Ino, smirking. “I know our Dads are old friends, so I’ll go easy on you.”

“Chouji, Chouji,” Naruto, who was awake by now, muttered. “Pretend she called you fat!”

Chouji, who was in fact fat, swelled with anger at these words and leaped down to the floor. Then he grew gigantic, more than three times his usual size, and he rolled, bulldozing his way toward Ino in a “meat tank.” But Chouji was clever. He zig zagged, going back and forth, so Ino’s mind control and body control techniques couldn’t get a clear lock on him.

Chouji knew the Yamanaka well.

Ino decided she’d have to try something else. She did a wind jutsu, blowing hard at Chouji, who tried to steamroll past the wind for a few seconds but then rolled away. The minute she was in the clear, Ino did the wind cutting ninjutsu.

Chouji retracted to his usual size with a gigantic, bloody scar across his back.

Ino then did an earth ninjutsu. Earth grew out from below the floor, which was already cracked and scorched from TenTen’s attack. The earth swallowed Chouji, wrapping him up in its embrace so only his face showed.

“Winner,” said Hayate, “Yamanaka Ino.” Chouji was taken away by medics.

Kankurou vs Tsurugi Misumi

Misumi was elastic, his body made of rubber. He wrapped rubbery limbs around Kankurou and trapped him there. He tried to squeeze Kankurou’s neck and snap it, but then the illusion fell away and Misumi was revealed to only be holding a weaponized puppet.

Kankurou appeared out of the hold strapped to the puppet’s back, controlling the puppet with chakra strings. The puppet’s arms grew and trapped Misumi within their grasp.

“Winner,” said Hayate, “Kankurou.”

Hyuuga Hinata vs Tsuchi Kin

“I saw your cousin’s attack,” said Kin, boasting. “I know what you can do.” She threw senbon at Hinata and they lodged into the wall behind her. There were little bells on the senbon, clanging and ringing, and then it looked like there were three Kins where one had been.

Her Byakugan eyes determined, Hinata charged right at the center Kin and struck a glancing blow on her shoulder that rendered her whole arm immobile. Kin gasped, flinching back, and dodged around a few more Jyuuken attacks. The multiple Kins genjutsu quickly disappeared.

“Clearly you do not know the Hyuuga as well as you think you do, Tsuchi-san,” said Hinata softly, cold. “Or else you would know that our eyes can see through all illusions, as can the Uchiha’s Sharingan.” 

Kin glared and then did some one handed seals, which was no small feat in and of itself. A rope of water appeared in the air, wrapping its tail around Hinata’s throat. Hinata was lifted up by the rope of water and held at Kin’s arm’s length, so she couldn’t touch Kin anymore.

Hinata floated there, choking, and then all of a sudden she glowed for a second and the water let her go. Hinata dropped to the ground, massaging her throat.

“I released cutting Jyuuken chakra from all over my body,” she said. “A high class Hyuuga ability I had never tried before. Thank you, Tsuchi-san.”

Then Hinata lashed out and hit a surprised Kin straight in the chest, over the heart, with a Jyuuken move. Kin paused, and spit up blood. She went to punch Hinata, infuriated, and Hinata blocked it, her expression calm. Then Kin’s expression of anger faded... and she slumped to the floor.

“Winner,” said Hayate, “Hyuuga Hinata.” Hinata closed her eyes.

Kin was taken off the field and to the clinic.

Rock Lee vs Aburame Shino

The last fight was interesting. Lee was a taijutsu master. He kept attacking Shino in taijutsu attacks, and Shino, who controlled bugs, kept replacing himself with bug clones to evade Lee’s attacks. Meanwhile, Shino’s bugs’ chakra sucking attacks didn’t work on Lee because Lee had malformed chakra coils and thus never used any chakra.

Lee at last took off his weights at the okay from his Sensei Gai. His moves immediately got faster, so much faster Shino couldn’t keep up. Shino was punched away and knocked unconscious in one move. 

“Winner,” said Hayate, “Rock Lee.”

So then the final ten fighters competing for Chuunin at the third test for the Chuunin Selection Exams was known: Gaara, Temari, Anko, Shikamaru, TenTen, Neji, Ino, Kankurou, Hinata, and Lee. All three Sand siblings had made it. None of the Oto team or the older Konoha Genin had made it. All three members of Gai’s team had made it. None of Kakashi’s team had made it. The only member of Asuma’s team who had made it was Hinata. And all three members of Kurenai’s team had made it.

“Sensei,” said Ino, smiling up at Kurenai, “you were looking for how we’re doing? I’d say the answer is ‘pretty good’.”

Some final remarks were made it: It was announced that the third test would take place at the local Konoha stadium one month from now. They were to use that month to train for their fights. From here on out, anyone who fought could hope to impress the judges and advance to Chuunin. The fighting would be done in tournament style. The first match-ups were:

Shikamaru vs Temari

Neji vs Hinata

Kankurou vs Shikamaru

Ino vs TenTen

Gaara vs Anko 

Gaara and Anko stared at each other across the room. Then Anko smirked. “What say our bet concludes at the end of the Chuunin Exams?” she suggested.


End file.
